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BERNARD ALBERT SINN

COLLECTION

NAVAL HISTORY AND BIOGRAPHY

THE GIFT OF

BERNARD A SINN, 97
1919

My 2 0 '40

DATE DUE

(JEC231966B¥

Cornell University Library

DK 214.K29

From the fleet in the fifties;

■'3 ■l'924 028 533 671

I Cornell University
/ Library

The original of tiiis book is in
tine Cornell University Library.

There are no known copyright restrictions in
the United States on the use of the text.

http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924028533671

FROM THE FLEET
IN THE FIFTIES

From the Fleet in the Fifties

A History of the Crimean War

MRS. TOM KELLY

WzfA which is incorporated Letters written in 1854.-5-6

THE REVEREND S. KELSON STOTHERT, M.A., LL.D.

. CHAPLAIN TO THE NAVAL BRIGADE

ILLUSTRATED BY WILLIAM SIMPSON, R.I.
PORTRAITS, ET CETERA

PREFACE BY VICE-ADMIRAL POWLETT

LONDON

HURST AND BLACKETT, LIMITED

13, GREAT MARLBOROUGH STREET
1902

>l 45-^146

PRINTED BY KELLY'S DIRECTORIES LIMITED,
LONDON AND KINGSTON.

DEDICATED

THE ROYAL NAVY,

"Whereon,
under the good
Providence of God, the
wealth and safety
of this Empire
do chiefly depend."

PREFACE.

I HAVE confidence that " From the Fleet in the Fifties"

will \\f^ lif»Qt-tiK7- \Kip\t^f\rr\f^(\ \\f\f\\ nv *i\r#a-i]i7ii-n*iccfic rS

ERRATA.

On page 241, tenth line from bottom of page,
read " proves the last,'' instead of
" proved the last.''

On page 234, eighth line from bottom of page,
read " pressed for," instead of " harassed
the."
On third line from bottom, read " griev-
ously harassed," instead of " grievously-
pressed. "

ine aisposai 01 tne property 01 tne •■ sick ivian, snouia
he succumb, a movement of the British and French
Fleets, from Besika Bay to the Bosphorus, soon
followed. The British were so ill provided with steam

PREFACE.

I HAVE confidence that " From the Fleet in the Fifties"
will be heartily welcomed, both by eye-witnesses of
the scenes therein depicted, as also by students of con-
temporary history.

The letters of the Chaplain to the Naval Brigade,
which have been largely indented upon, though evidently
written only for family perusal, contain much that is of
public value, their original destination enhancing their
worth.

" From the Fleet in the Fifties " not only, however,
records events that occurred in the Fleet and Naval
Brigade on shore, but the author has recalled to
recollection many of the stirring incidents of a military
character.

The careful observer cannot fail to be struck with the
want of preparation for war that this account brings to
light in both Services. It would be idle now to ask,
" Was the Russian war necessary ? " But what does
immediately concern us is the question suggested by
this work. Are our Army and Navy in a better state
of preparation for war now than in the Fifties ?

When the Tsar Nicholas expressed his anxiety as to
the disposal of the property of the " Sick Man," should
he succumb, a movement of the British and French
Fleets, from Besika Bay to the Bosphorus, soon
followed. The British were so ill provided with steam

viii FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

power that their line-of-battle ships with difficulty got
through the Dardanelles. The French, on the other
hand, were able to obey the summons with promptitude.

At the bombardment of Kimburn in October, 1855,
the French alone were able to oppose armoured vessels
(floating batteries) to the Russian forts. And through-
out the Black Sea campaign there was not that predom-
inance of the British Navy that we now feel is
necessary to our national existence.

Some years afterwards, when rumours of war were
not in the air, a statesman, who was largely responsible
for the efficiency of the Navy, from his place in Parlia-
ment, averred all was so perfect that had he more
money placed at his disposal for the Navy, he should
not know how to lay it out. This may, of course, be
read in more ways than one.

Later, there was an International gathering of Fleets
at Barcelona. Here the British Fleet cut but a poor
figure in comparison with either that of France or Italy.

There has, however, in recent years been a great
awakening — a national outcry for a powerful Navy.
This demand emanated from the people rather than as
a consequence of any statesman's act. There is pro-
bably no individual to whom we owe so much for
showing us our needs as to Captain Mahan, who,
with his facile pen, in " The Influence of Sea Power "
and other works, exhibits, in glowing sentences, what
is absolutely essential for us.

But there has always been an official hesitancy : we
have not led the way, either in the adoption of improved
offensive weapons or in defensive armour. The most
recent illustration was the attitude of the Admiralty
with regard to " Submarines." The dictum, " Si vis

PREFACE. ix

pacem, para bellunt" meets with but scant respect : " In
time of danger, not before," it must be admitted, is our
way. Fortunate are we not to have more severely
suffered for our procrastination.

If it be permissible, without calling forth such
epithets as "amateur strategist" or "armchair tacti-
cian," to glance for a moment at our military progress
in fifty years : what has it been ? Are we more ready
now to meet our enemies — and they are legion — in the
gate, than we were fifty years ago ? Have the events
of the Boer war shown this to be the case ?

Those who are old enough may remember the loud
outcry for reform during the pinch of war in the Fifties,
but with what result } After the Peace, the Control
Department was established, which led a stormy
existence of but a few years before it was abolished
as unworkable. No real reform resulted. Have we
not to look deeper for it than to some departmental
tinkering whether of " Remounts," or other detail ?

Whilst recognising the gallant spirit and determined
courage that pervades all branches and ranks of the
Service, now as ever, must it not be confessed that
there is a canker at the root ?

" Oh ! I suppose we shall fight the Boers in the
morning, and play Polo after luncheon," are words
put into the mouth of an officer by a humorist ; do
they not portray but too well the spirit of a large
number with whom sport holds the first place ? This
is, however, a subject that the country should
critically examine, so that professional proficiency may
be paramount in both Services.

ARMAND T. POWLETT.

CONTENTS.

CHAPTER I.

PAGE

Reasons for another Crimean History — Publication of
posthumous letters — Difficulty of selecting from
correspondence — The Fleet the base of operations
in the campaign — Maritime advantage of the Allies
— The Reverend S. Kelson Stothert — University
career — Choice of profession — Character — Friend-
ships— Opinions in the Fleet concerning operations
— Project at end of the War — Chaplain to ships
named — Special Embassy ..... i

CHAPTER H.

1853-4-
Negotiations between Russia and Turkey — Russian
occupation of Wallachia and Moldavia — Policy of
England — Catherine the Great — Fortress of Sevas-
topol— Russian aggression — The Tsar Nicholas
Romanoff — Quarrel between Greek and Latin
Churches — The Emperor Louis Napoleon's policy —
Conference of Ambassadors at Constantinople —
Prince Mentschikoff's attitude — Lord Stratford de
Redcliffe's powers — Condition of England's Navy and
Army in 1853 — Disaster at Sinope — Reception of
tidings at Constantinople — Indignation serves to
precipitate the War — Allied Fleets move up from
Besika Bay to the Black Sea — Naval architecture of
the past — H.M.S. Queen — At Sinope . . .10

CHAPTER III.

March — April, 1854.

Relating to correspondence — Concerning voyage — Fellow
passengers — Voyage continued — Spanish coast com-
pared with home scenes — African coast — Turtle —

xii FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

PAGE

Greek islands — Syra — Constantinople — The Turks
— Turkish bath — Stamboul — Report of Russians
having crossed the Danube — A war forecast . • 17

CHAPTER IV.

April, 1854.

The Eastern Question — Alliance between England and
France — Impressions of the Sinope disaster— Con-
ference of Ambassadors concluded — Unreadiness of
the Army and Navy for a great war — Declaration of
War — Turkish Patriotism ! — Ignorance of Turks —
Mr. Eber — Visit to a Pasha — " Christian dog " and
" Greek villain " — H.M.S. Fury — Chaplain joins
H.M.S. Queen — Odessa — Steamers of the Fleet pro-
ceed into the Bay — Bombardment of Odessa —
H.M.S. Terrible — The "Saucy Arethusa" — The
recall — Allies determine to push forward into Turkish
territory — Gallipoli — Scutari — Encampment on the
plain of Haidar Pacha — Activity at Woolwich
during March and April ...... 26

CHAPTER V.

May, 1854.

The Tsar's preparations — The Great Powers display
much energy — Off Sevastopol — Chaplain deprecates
lagging officers and England's hesitation — Lack of
literature — Discomfort — Prepared for action — Belli-
cose mood — Black Sea weather — The Guards ad-
mired by Turkish ladies — Defends Admiral Dundas
— Admiral Napier in the Baltic — Disaster to H.M.S.
Tiger — The ship's surgeon's account — The Baltic
Fleets — The ancient Odessus — Visit to Varna —
Plan of Sevastopol — Prescience concerning the
campaign 40

CHAPTER VI.
May — June, 1854.

Lord Raglan — St. Arnaud — Omar Pasha — Sir George
Brown— The Sultan Abdul Medjid Khan— Allied

CONTENTS. xiii

PAGE

Troops on Haidar Pacha — Allowing other countries
to provision Russian ports — Pic-nic in Bulgaria —
Silistria — Bashi-Bazouks — Troops at Varna — Death
of Captain Giffard — Officers of H.M.S. Tiger at
Odessa — Kindness of the Governor — Cruise off
Sevastopol — Russian ships attack — A Pasha's
dinner party — Ramazan — Postal regulations . . 56

CHAPTER VII.

July, 1854.

Sir Charles Napier in the Baltic — " Unique fact in
history " — General Baraguay D'Hilliers — Bomarsund
— The British taxpayer — Raising the siege of Silistria
— Allied Fleets arrive at Varna — The French Flag —
The Duke of Cambridge — Capture of a Cossack
officer — Heat — Taxes — Greeks — Ships being com-
missioned at home — Insufficient pay — Death of
Captain Parker — Officers of Tiger return to Fleet —
Tsar's compliment to Captain Giffard — Heat — Delay
— Oxford Degree — Omar Pasha's advice concerning
encampment — Typhus and hardship — All ranks im-
patient to leave Bulgaria — Nothing ready — Recon-
naissance Expedition — Cruise off Sevastopol —
Batteries appear formidable — Cholera . . -72

CHAPTER VIII.

August — Skptember, 1 854.

Misery of all ranks at Varna— Climate — Great mortality
— Habits of the French — Increase of death-roll —
French Divisions in the Dobrudscha — Poisoned
wells — Lack of preparation for an uncertain cam-
paign— Rumours — Aladyn — Cholera — Privation and
pestilence — Trip to Varna — ^Sir George Brown —
Sickness in the Fleet — Cholera — Incendiaries at
Varna — Greek treachery — Cape Emein — Cholera in
the Queen — Buckley's death — Terrible sickness in
the Fleets — Chaplain sickly — Loathsome surround-
ings— Lords of the Admiralty — Lack of medical
men — Anomalous position of surgeons in the Navy
— Marshal St. Arnaud — Daily death-roll — Plague

xiv FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

PAGE

winds — Schmayl — Transports arriving with troops
— Walk in country — Vines — Number of different
armies — Turkish child — The Turkish Fleet— Justifi-
cation of Admiral for sending Turks away . . 83

CHAPTER IX.

September, 1854.

Reasons for Invasion of the Crimea not understood —
Tsar's defensive preparations — His knowledge of the
enemy's intentions — Journalistic information — Its
influence on the British public — Alternative measures
had Invasion not been planned — British Admirals
and Generals — Austrian aid to Omar Pasha — Duke
of Newcastle's Despatch — Diplomatic exigency —
The Emperor Louis Napoleon — Lord Raglan and
the other Commanders disapprove of Invasion — Too
late in the year — Lord Raglan's reply — St. Arnaud
and the fire at Varna — Transports gather at Varna
— Prepare to convey troops — Splendid conduct of
the merchant Captains — Convoy organized by
Captain Mends, R.N. — French Divisions embark —
They take no Cavalry — Turkish Troops embark
on their own ships — Cavalry embark — Admiral
Dundas in Britannia — Men left at Varna — Sickness
in Fleets — French start first — Transports towed by
steamers — Armada convoyed by British War-ships
— Magnificent display — Fleets under weigh —
Cholera — St. Arnaud ill — Wishes to reconsider pro-
posed descent on the Crimea — Lord Raglan's reply
— Decides to land at Old Fort — French land first . 98

CHAPTER X.

September, 1854.

Feeble condition of many in Fleet and Army — Unfit to
land — Crews of Queen and London — First night in
Crimea — Undisturbed — Mentschikoff concentrating
troops — British, French and Turkish Forces —
Osmanli in the Principalities — Turkish soldier in
the Crimea — Russian soldier — The Caradoc — Flag
of Truce — Delayed by French Fleet — Eupatoria —

CONTENTS. XV

PAGE

Better spirits — Cholera — Terror of French — Alter-
nations of temperature — Three days to take Sevas-
topol— Escalade suggested — French Zouaves landing
— Sir George Brown's reconnaissance — Aspect of
country — British steamers engage Russian Howitzer
battery — Russian strength — Divided counsels . .107

CHAPTER XI.

September, 1854.

Want of knowledge of Enemy's country — Mr. W. H.
Pennington — His narrative — Voyage — Alarms in
Bivouac — Lord Cardigan — Disposition of the Allied
Armies — Skirmish at Boulganak — Covering Horse
Artillery in Action — French opportune service to
Light Brigade 1 16

CHAPTER XH.

September, 1854.

Flank March — Mentschikoffs choice of position — St.
Arnaud — Mr. Pennington's description of events of
20th September — Battle of Alma — Guards and
Highlanders — Light Division — Wounded Russian —
Battle as seen from the Queen — The Day after . 1 26

CHAPTER XHI.

September, 1854.

St. Arnaud compliments the British Troops — Lacy Yea
of 7th Fusiliers — Russian care of guns — Difficult
Ally — The wounded — Chaplain's loot — L'audace not
persisted in — Mentschikoffs naval coup — Sir Edmund
Lyons' opinion — Fleet as Base — Willing co-operation
— Small Force encountered on Flank March — Mr.
Eber — Arrival of H.M.S. A rrow — French blow up a
Fort — Fleet disappointed — Landing of French —
Bays of Kamiesh and Kazatch — Placing of French
Army — Balaklava Port — Enormous traffic — Upland
— Its defence — Defences opposed to Allies — French
reject plan for immediate Assault — Death of French
Commander-in-Chief 145

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

CHAPTER XIV.

October, 1854.

PAGE

Naval Brigade landed — Mentschikoffs temporary absence
— Fleet's alacrity in giving aid — Chaplain visits
Naval Brigade Camp — His " parishioners " — View of
Sevastopol — Illness — Cannonade . . . -157

CHAPTER XV.

October, 1854.

French fear premature assault — Position of Allies —
Delay favours enemy — Balaklava Harbour — Fever
and Cholera — Allies place guns in batteries — Dis-
position of guns from Terrible — General Lourmel —
Ships ordered to Yalta for supplies — Turkish in-
genuity— Sevastopol garrisoned — Combined attack
decided upon — Fleet dissatisfied with position —
Munitions for ships — Attack of 17th October —
Death of Admiral Korniloff — Queen in action —
Casualties in Queen — Queen on fire — Eber of the
Times — Casualties in other Ships — Russian losses —
Naval Doctor — Naval Captains disappointed —
Reasons — Obstinate resistance of enemy — Explosion
in French magazine — British cannonade continued —
Naval Brigade — Captain Peel's feat — Augmenting
Naval Brigade — Activity of enemy — Protection of
Balaklava impracticable — Inner line — Outer line —
Sir Colin Campbell's despatch 171

CHAPTER XVI.

October, 1854.

Mr. Pennington — Difficulty of judging responsibility at
Commission of enquiry — Captain Nolan — The Light
Brigade — Impressions at early morning muster — The
25th October — Approach of enemy — Attack on
Redouts — Taking Redouts — Enemy meets High-
landers— Encounters Heavy Brigade — Offers brief
resistance — Lord Raglan sees enemy's attempt on
guns — No. 3 Redout — Communicates with Lord
Lucan — Dictates the celebrated Order — Sends it by

CONTENTS.

PAGE

Nolan to Lord Lucan — Nolan's knowledge of Lord
Raglan's intent — Lord Cardigan's advance — Death
of Nolan — Ambiguous wording of Order — Descrip-
tion of Advance — Mr. Pennington's experience —
Incidents of the Advance — Colonel Shewell and the
8th Hussars — Reflections — Service rendered by-
French Generals — Trumpet-sounding fable — Charac-
ter of Lord Cardigan — Personal reminiscence —
Defence of Lord Cardigan — Conduct of Turks on
25 th October — Sortie from Sevastopol — Captain
Gerald Goodlake — Mr. Hewett and his Lancaster
gun — Russian losses — Lack of medical supervision 187

CHAPTER XVII.

The Present Time.
Concerning survivors of the Balaklava Charge . .210

CHAPTER XVIII.

October — -November, 1854.

Resum^ of incidents of 25 th October — Chasseurs
d'Afrique — Fickleness of fame — Results of events of
2Sth — Discussions concerning abandoning Balaklava
— Political opinions — Uncertainty and dread —
Government to blame — Books wanted — Russian
characteristic — " Statu quo " — Cold weather — Mr.
Eber — Chaplain's wish to go to Palestine . . .217

CHAPTER XIX.

November, 1854.

News of Inkerman — Terrible contest — Dread of Assault
being delayed — Lack of reinforcements — Winter
prospects — Gales — Loss of ships — Report of Turkish
barbarity — Generals wounded — ^46th Regiment —
List of killed and wounded officers at Inkerman —
The Duke of Cambridge — Fears for winter — Assault
postponed — Rumours reach the Fleet — Captain Peel
— Inclement weather 225

xviii FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

CHAPTER XX.

PAGE

November, 1854.
The Battle of Inkerman 234

CHAPTER XXI.

November, 1854.

Condition of Allied Armies after Inkerman — The
British Press — Lord Raglan's diiificulties — State of
Hospitals — Miss Nightingale's arrival — Results of
her work — Varied opinions about disorganization —
The French unprepared — Commissary-General
ignorant till 8th November that Troops would
winter in Crimea .250

CHAPTER XXn.

November, 1854.

Terrible gale of 14th November — Its calamitous results
— Great loss and disaster — Obtuseness of the
Admiralty — Chaplain ordered to the front — Joins
the Naval Brigade Camp 257

CHAPTER XXni.

December, 1854.

Troops impatient at delay — Their endurance — Lord
Raglan's difficulties increase — No tents — Balaklava
harbour — Food for horses insufficient — Transport of
stores almost impossible — State of road over the Col
— Lord Raglan's hesitancy to ask French assistance
— Burden-bearers — Capacity of different Regiments
— Diet — Blue-jackets — Disorganization — Batteries —
Chaplain ill — Naval men — Naval Brigade . . 266

CHAPTER XXIV.

January — February, 1855.

Russian knowledge of condition of Allied Troops — The
Besieged — Snow — January death-roll — The Gallants
of Merrie England — George Campbell of Dun-

CONTENTS.

PAGE

staffnage — Navvies arrive to construct railway —
French take up more duty — The Highland Division
meet a snowstorm — General Vinoy — Between
Kadikoi and Balaklava — Baidar — Illness — Misery of
the men — Lord Raglan — Omar Pasha — General
Cathcart's funeral — Steam — Reports — Chaplain's
duties — Turkish Troops brought from Bulgaria-
Defence of Eupatoria — Recall of Lord Lucan . . 279

CHAPTER XXV.

March — April, 1855.

Lord Valentia makes suggestion — Report of the death of
the Tsar — Report true — Policy and character of
Nicholas I. — Proclamation of Alexander IL —
Vienna Conference — Louis Napoleon — Cable laid
between Bulgaria and the Crimea — Eber and the
Times — Omar Pasha — Chaplain's duties — Prospect
for Black Sea trading — Rumour of Flag of Truce —
Death of Lieutenant Douglas 294

CHAPTER XXVL

April — May, 1855.

Bombardment — Naval Brigade — Welsh wigs — Vacillation
at Headquarters — Lieutenant Whyte — Remarks
about position of Allies — Remarks about the French
— Doubtful whether Ships will go in— Lieutenant
Whyte's case — Captain Christie — Admiral Boxer —
Expedition to Kertch recalled — Fortifications of
Sevastopol — Sir Edmund Lyons — Canrobert retires
— P^lissier becomes Commander-in-Chief of the
French Forces — Arrival of Sardinian Army — Queen
cleared for Action — Taxation in Navy and Army —
Visit to Trenches — Under shell fire — Mortars — How
the Blue-jackets settled their difficulty . . . 306

CHAPTER XXVn.

June, 1855.

Success of Expedition to Kertch — Captain Lyons —
Destruction at Kertch by Turks — Ethical comment

XX FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

PAGE

— Self-reliance of P^lissier — His dissept from his
Sovereign's opinion — Third Bombardment — Taking
of the Quarries — In the Genoa battery — French
occupation of Mamelon — Assault determined upon
— Furious bombardment of the 17th — French change
of plan — Desperate Assault — Colonel Yea killed —
Splendid resistance of the enemy — Loss in the Naval
Brigade — Captain Peel wounded — Midshipman
Wood wounded — Repulse and great loss — Night
attack — Chaplain Lyons wounded — General Camp-
bell killed — Captain Lyons dead — Court Martial —
General Codrington's letter to Colonel Yea's sisters . 321

CHAPTER XXVIII.

June— July, 1855.

Illness and death of Lord Raglan — Profound regret in
all ranks of the Allied Armies — Lord Raglan's
character — His supreme difficulties — Honour paid
by the enemy in Sevastopol — General Simpson
takes command — Remarks on Russian Troops —
Administrative Reform Association — Lord Raglan's
funeral — The Gentlemen of England — Heat —
Batteries — Longings — Heavy firing — P^lissier — Re-
miniscence of Lord Raglan — More guns wanted —
De Todleben — Sapping persisted in — Serious losses
among working Parties — Court Martial — Admiral
Michell 338

CHAPTER XXIX.

August, 1855.

Operations in the Baltic — Kronstadt — Bombardment of
Sveaborg — Helsingfors — The Russian soldier in the
Garrison of Sevastopol — Russians attack Allies in
rear — Battle of Tchernaya — Defence of French and
Sardinians at the Aqueduct — General de la Marmora
— Retreat of the enemy — Tchorgoun re-occupied
by Sardinians — Loss on- both sides — Commander
Hammett — French deserter shot — Description of
field of Inkerman — The justice of a promotion
questioned — Russians lack of food and water . -353

CONTENTS. xxi

CHAPTER XXX.

August — September, 1855.

PAGE

Capture of Sevastopol — Inside the Town — The Docks —

The Dead 362

CHAPTER XXXI.

October — November, 1855.

Naval Brigade rejoin the Fleet — Honours — Position of
the conquerors — Demolition of batteries — Eupatoria
— Kimbum — H.M.S. Queen — Steam Tanks wanted —
Circassian customs — Chaplain's encounter with a
Greek — Commissariat — An English Banker — Work
— Preparations for winter ..... 377

CHAPTER XXXn.

November — December, 1855, January, 1856.

Progress in the Crimea — Kars — Omar Pasha — General
Williams — His splendid resistance — Turkish loss —
Concentrating towards Tchernaya and Baidai — Sir
Colin Campbell — Kars — Omar Pasha — H.M.S. Royal
Albert — Proposed Sailor's Club — Omar Pasha —
Admiral Bruat — Funerals — Winter projects — Ru-
mours— Departure of Generals to consult in Paris —
Cold weather 391

CHAPTER XXXIII.

January — February, 1856.

Biographical — Project for building the first English
Church in Turkey — International Views — Ortaquoi
congregation — Chaplain's work and position in the
Service — The Church plan — Severe sentence —
Design for the Church — French forethought — Lord
Stratford de Redcliffe's reception — Illness — Ortaquoi
— Illness — At Therapia — St. Euphemia's Well — Con-
dition of Allied Troops — Payment of Naval
Chaplains ......... 401

xxii FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

CHAPTER XXXIV.

February — March — April — May, 1856.

PAGE

Paris Conference — French Emperor's loyalty to Alliance
— Some conditions of the Treaty — Proclamation of
Peace in the Crimea — Distinction between Chapel
and Church — Variableness of climate — Sicily and
Naples — Eastern Question still a Problem — Palm
Sunday — The Armenian Christians — Admiral and
Mrs. Grey — Money wanted for Ortaquoi Church —
Admiral Grey's house burnt — Lady Stratford de
Redcliffe — Depression — Church at Ortaquoi com-
pleted— Church opened — Flute playing on the
Bosphorous 413

CHAPTER XXXV.

Summary — The doubtful Policy — Its influence on the Cam-
paign— Administrative failure — Inevitable lessons —
Pdlissier becomes Due de Malakoff — Experience
urges Reform — Important condition of Treaty
ignored — Struggle of some survivors of the War —
Presentation by Ortaquoi congregations — Dr.
Stothert's career after retiring from the Royal
Navy — His life and work in Ordsall, Notts. — The
doubtful issues of the Campaign — Turkish integrity
still maintained — The Red Flag with the Star and
the Crescent 427

Appendix 442

Index ..... .... 449

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.

Facing
page

H.M.S. Queen, from a Drawing by Lady Wood, 1853.

Frontispiece

Allied Fleets in Beicos Bay 8

Kelson Stothert's Home, Bath, from a Drawing by his son,

J. Kendal Stothert 12

The Reverend S. Kelson Stothert, M. A., LL.D., Chaplain to

the Naval Brigade 16

H.M.S. Agamemnon, April 25th, 1854, from a Picture by

Flag-Lieutenant Cowper Coles 42

Rear-Admiral Sir Edmund Lyons, Bart., G.C.B., from a

Drawing by William Simpson, R.I. . . . . .80

Map of the Black Sea, by Gordon R. Steuart .... 96

Mr. W. H. Pennington, from a Photograph by Bell. . .116
Major Peel, nth Hussars, the last Drawing of 1

William Simpson, R.I. . . . . . J ' ^

Colonel Walter Lacy Yea, 7th Fusiliers, from a Miniature . 144
Mrs. Seacole, from a Drawing by William Simpson, R.L 162

Naval Brigade Camp, from a Drawing by William Simpson, R.L 170
At 5 p.m., October 17th, 1854, from a Picture by

Flag-Lieutenant Cowper Coles . . . . .180
Captain Peel, R.N., from a Drawing by William Simpson, R.I. 184
The Earl of Cardigan, from a Drawing by William Simpson, R. I. 206
One of the Naval Brigade, from a Drawing by 1

William Simpson, R.I j • ' "^

The Reverend Kelson Stothert and "Parishioners" . . 256

Commissariat DifiSculties in Crimean Mud, from a Drawing by

William Simpson, R.L ....... 268

Blue- jackets in Battery, from a Drawing by William Simpson, R.L 274
George Campbell of Dunstaffnage, 71st Regiment, from a

Miniature ......... 284

One of the Naval Brigade in Welch Wig, from a Drawing by

William Simpson, R.L . . . . . . . 308

Kertch, from a Drawing by WiUiam Simpson, R.L . . . 322
Midshipman Evelyn Wood, from a Painting in 1854 . . 332
Colonel Yea's Grave in the Crimea, from a Drawing in 1855 . 336
Bombardment of Sveaborg, from a Painting by Carmichael . 354
Sevastopol Harbour after the Siege, 1855, from a Drawing by

William Simpson, R.L . . . . . . .372

Captain Lushington, R.N., from a Drawing by ) „

William Simpson, R.I j" • -378

Map of the Booms and Bridge of Boats, from a Sketch by

G. H. K. Bower, R.N 390

Silver Cup, presented to Kelson Stothert by the People of

Ortaquoi, Turkey . . . 1 . . . 436

INTRODUCTION.

Previous to 1854, history has no record of any im-
portant conflict in which the forces of Britain were
pitted against those of Russia, for the presence of an
English Fleet in the Baltic in 17 19, was a coercive
measure to frustrate Peter the Great's designs for the
subjugation of Sweden.

The reasonableness of maintaining friendship be-
tween the two most powerful nations of Europe does
not appear at any time to have been appreciated by
either of their Governments. Diplomacy never aimed
at effecting that lasting alliance which might have pro-
moted an incalculably strong influence upon European
affairs. Nor was the benefit to accrue to British
interests from a successful war against Russia defined
before the doubtful struggle of the Fifties was begun.

Although hostilities on the part of Russia, were
prompted by causes that reached far into the past, in
the balance of motive, as well as in the final judgment,
one factor should not be forgotten : the motive which
impelled Russia to make war was quite independent of
any direct animosity towards Britain. In times of truce
thfere was no vindictive feeling displayed. " You are
such grand, clean men," said a Muscovite officer to an
English subaltern on one of these occasions, " we are
very sorry indeed that we have to kill you."

At the outset I must confess that my knowledge of

xxvi FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

the Crimean War is the result of recent research.
Even if I had given myself no wider task than to make
selections for publication from the correspondence of
the Chaplain to the Naval Brigade, serious study
of the subject would have been imperative. Out of
the obvious necessity, however, of linking his letters
together by a continuous account of the operations
they, in part, describe, grew the purpose of writing
a history of the campaign.

Of my own shortcomings in this book I am too well
aware. Not finding in my research, as I had hoped,
sufficient material for an absolutely naval point of view,
and proficiency in military science, with its technical
equipment, being beyond my skill, an accurate and
sympathetic outline of the struggle was all I dared to
attempt.

Kelson Stothert lived double the number of years he
had attained when these unpretentious letters from the
Crimea were hurriedly written. Had he edited them
himself, probably emendations would have been made ;
for, in the Fifties, he was always much more concerned
about what he had to say than about his manner of
saying it. Although revision, doubtless, would have
given them more of Dr. Stothert's later literary style, it
might also have violated a certain direct simplicity
which better accords with the circumstance of war and
the ardent expression of chivalrous sentiment.

I hope it will be found that time has not dulled
interest in his subject, and, in the fact that he was a
keen observer of the happenings of a great national
event, adequate reason for not treating his corre-
spondence as mere private property.

I am much indebted to many other authorities,

INTRODUCTION. xxvii

upon whose information I have based certain state-
ments on naval and military matters, as well as to
those authors to whom I have so frequently referred.
My gratitude is also due for varied help to Sir Evelyn
Wood, Admiral Powlett, Mr. W. H. Pennington, and
to the late Mr. William Simpson, whose last bit of
exquisite work was the unfinished etching of Major
Peel, upon which he was engaged a few hours before
his earnest and kindly spirit passed away.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

CHAPTER I.

It is doubtless expedient that all personal accounts of
the Crimean Invasion not destined to obscurity should
be published while there are still living some of the
participators in that protracted struggle. Although the
subject has suggested to different writers special, not to
say untenable, theories concerning the manner in which
the campaign should have been conducted, others
compel a more universal interest by their fresh points
of view, and by bringing to light circumstances and
motives which influenced the course of events. Happily
each work in its turn serves to provoke the kind of
argument which generally elicits accuracy. But the
attention most of these books excite is significant of
the inference that the salient factors in the causes and
operations, no less than in the defined results of that
pregnant episode, have not all yet become matters of
irrefragable history.

It can never be considered that the last word has
been said about any important event till time, the
discloser of secrets, has yielded up the irresponsible
popular opinions and the varied influences which more
or less swayed the Governments of the period.

Notwithstanding the acknowledged blundering, there
have been many astute efforts made to demonstrate the
good resulting from the prolonged conflict with Russia,
and indeed by every war which has taken place during

2 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

the last century. Equivocal indeed must be the
benefit to mankind, however, which forces on the world
the barbaric paradox, that, notwithstanding compre-
hensive treaties signed by " high contracting parties,"
it is only by arming to the teeth that the Christian
nations of Europe maintain their existence in peace.

It is well known now that neither the British Navy nor
Army was prepared for a campaign of such magnitude
as to last two long years and cost more than a million
lives. To authors who have given indelible pictures of
its passing events, and vivid portraits of the men who
heroically bore the brunt of the day, we are also
indebted for certain blunt and unavoidable judgments
upon the counsels that precipitated such a war. It is a
curious fact that these judgments, contained in the
simply-confessed opinions of the sufferers, in letters and
diaries written during the struggle, though offered to
the public only after the lapse of many years, were, in
reality, prophetic of the verdicts of a new generation
possessing a more unprejudiced and abundant know-
ledge In the impact of races essentially differing in
creed and custom, was found the solution of many
bewildering problems which had vexed their Govern-
ments hundreds of leagues distant from the individuals
most concerned.

In 1833, when the aid of Russia had enabled the
Sultan to defeat the Egyptian invader, he agreed to
violate the centuries-old Ottoman right of way into the
Euxine, and to exclude all ships of war from the Dar-
danelles, save his own and those of the Tsar. This
agreement was modified in 1841 by an International
treaty, which closed the Straits to the other Powers as
long as Turkey remained at peace. Twelve years
later, in order to bring pressure to bear upon Turkey,
while negotiations of far-reaching import between the
Great Powers were in progress, the Russian military
occupation of the Principalities of Wallachia and
Moldavia was effected, and, in the former province, an

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 3

attempt was made to incorporate the native militia with
the troops of the Tsar.

In October, 1853, the Porte demanded the evacua-
tion of the provinces within fifteen days, with the
alternative of a declaration of war. But, notwith-
standing the uneasiness of Austria, resulting from the
proximity of the Russian legions, the Tsar deemed this
occupation a necessary menace which could not fail to
emphasise the "reasonableness" of the measures upon
which, at that time, he was insisting. Omar Pasha and
his brave troops harassed the invaders by a strenuous
resistance,* but the skill of diplomatists was sorely
exercised to evade the Tsar's demands, which would
have been much less aggressive had he believed that a
speedy war could be seriously contemplated by the
Western Powers. The policy of England had under-
gone a radical change ; now realising that by aiding
Russian aggrandisement (in order to keep the balance
of European power out of the hands of France) she
was supporting a preponderance equally, if not more,
inimical to her own interests, she had become
suspicious.

The true causes of the great conflict of 1854-5 had,
however, long existed before hostilities actually began
on the Lower Danube, and may be materially traced to
the Romanoff hereditary and ever-increasing ambition
to obtain possession of Constantinople. To hold that
fair city, to gain a free and spacious maritime outlet for
her vast internal resources — a road for her navy and
mercantile fleet, which her flag in command of the
Bosphorus alone could yield — was Russia's dream, and
the family tradition of her Sovereigns. Catherine the
Great had left a frank confession of this ambition
when, on the quarter of Kieff next to Constantinople,
she had inscribed in Greek characters the words :

* Before the evacuation actually took place the Russiati losses (including those
of Rustchuk and Silistria) were acknowledged to amount to 35,000 men —
" Coldstream Guards in the Crimea," page 13.— Lieut. -Col. Ross-of-Brandenburg.

4 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

" Through this gate lies the road to Byzantium." The
fortifications of Sevastopol were also designed by the
same dominant idea, for the utility of such a protected
harbour to Russia in the event of her navy pushing its
way forcibly into the high seas, was doubtless apparent
to that sagacious monarch, whilst the almost impreg-
nable position of its fortresses must have been also
apparent to all who might in turn become her enemies.
The Crimean invasion proved this great naval arsenal
almost unassailable.

During the period of national unrest about the
encroachments of Russia, Lord Salisbury once advised
the timorous to procure " large maps," but had he
recommended the comparison of Russian maps at
certain intervals for the last two centuries, there might
have been found in them suggestion of solid precedent
on which to ground a greater dread, for, with some
slight checks and interruptions, the increase of Imperial
territory has gone on rapidly since the reign of Ivan
the Terrible.

The Tsar Nicholas Romanoff possessed all the
boundless ambition of his ancestors, with an absolute
belief in his own God-appointed sovereignty. Succeed-
ing to an autocracy powerful enough to quell internal
dispute, and old enough to inspire that fear which is
often mis-named reverence, his inherent capacity for
originating despotic methods to give effect to his
purposes, might well have won applause from even
Catherine herself.

History is scarcely less prone than tradition to attri-
bute the faults and failures of a government to the
personal qualities of the individual who wears the crown,
and does not always give adequate prominence to those
constitutional conditions of which he may have been
the victim. The weaker traits of Nicholas Romanoff
have been amply dealt with by innumerable writers,
but until 1853 he had not forfeited the deference of
Europe by any flagrant act of international faithless-

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 5

ness. To Austria, at one period, he had proved him-
self even chivalrous, in making no claim after having
come to her aid to suppress the Hungarian insurrection
which might have ended in a revolution. But the experi-
ence of the Great Powers had inspired watchfulness, for
there were valid enough reasons for suspicion regarding
the Tsar's attitude towards the Turkish dominions.

The protracted quarrel between the Greek and the
Latin churches for the care of the sacred shrines in
Palestine, doubtless precipitated the European rupture,
and certain Cabinets became more and more alert and
expectant. The Emperor of the French had potent
motives for urging any pretext to divert the attention
of his people from their own internal dissatisfaction.
Having flung off the yoke of democracy they were
beginning to find the fetters of Imperialism equally
galling. The Napoleonic dynasty having been founded
on the idea of a permanent military system, the promise
of a glorious war would, he knew well, prove the bait
to a welcome distraction. Under the guise of pious
ardour for the Latin Church in the East, he made
certain demands which the Tsar, as defender of the
followers of his own faith, resisted, displaying mean-
while much pretended desire to avert an open rupture,
so that upon Turkey or France might rest the respon-
sibility of any ultimate disagreement affecting the peace
of Europe.

At length Prince Mentschikoff was sent to Constan
tinople as the Tsar's envoy to the Sultan, but it was
quickly discovered that his intent was not pacific. He
greatly retarded negotiations by insulting the Minister
for Foreign Affairs. The purport of every Russian
suggestion in the conference between the ambassadors
invariably contained some unpermissible advantage for
the Tsar over the other Powers. But when the Pro-
tectorate of the followers of the Greek Church in
Turkey, who numbered from ten to fourteen millions,*

* Kingslake, Vol. I., pages 108 — no.

6 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1853 was demanded, through the dim guise of religious
fervour the true dominant motive was perceived.
Doubtless most of the Tsar's subjects ignorantly
believed that a holy zeal prompted him to arrogate to
himself the temporal power implied in the title,
" Defender of the followers of the Cross," and that all
of the Faith who lived under the Ottoman rule were
thankfully looking to him as their great deliverer.

The ministers of the Sultan were not blind to the
issues such a concession would have involved. With a
singular and futile attempt at secrecy the Protectorate
was urged upon the Porte, and the bribe offered of a
secret treaty to be made between Russia and Turkey,
which would have put a fleet and an army at the dis-
posal of the Sultan in the event of war with either of
the Western Powers. The ambassadors were informed
of the proposals almost as soon as they were made.
Prince Mentschikoff, who was not by any means a
prince of diplomatists, had to encounter one who was
this by nature and experience, for Lord Stratford de
Redcliffe could anticipate and ward off every thrust of
the Russian duel. His instructions had given him a
free hand. The French Emperor had cast so great a
spell over the Ministers of the English Cabinet that
they were willing to undertake even the responsibility
of accepting him as an Ally in the defence of the
Turkish dominions. Our ambassador's moral support
to the Sultan included the promise of armed protection
if his rights were not held inviolate.

In England the peace party was in the ascendant,
and the old warlike spirit which had braved the rest of
Europe for centuries seemed to be almost effete, though
in any suggested change affecting the rights of the
Porte, Britain had never failed to be wary. She was
jealous lest her own great maritime interests in the
East should be jeopardised, and her ofttimes coveted
highway to India become disputed waters whereon
alien fleets might ride at will. The flag of the Sultan in

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. ^

command of the Bosphorus being the guarantee of the 1853
due maintenance of her privileges there, she was
willing to uphold it valorously ; but in 1853 her army
and navy were in no condition to enter upon a pro-
longed struggle. A perilously peaceful interval had
succeeded the years of dread of French invasion
inspired by Napoleon, and it is somewhat curious that
to his nephew must be attributed the alliance which
resulted in a combined defence of the Sublime Porte.

Notwithstanding the parochial economy that had led
to the deplorable state of unreadiness, the Duke of
Northumberland had recently succeeded in making an
addition of five thousand men to the navy, as well as
in augmenting the number of warships in commission.*
Sir James Graham, his successor at the Admiralty, ex-
perienced the benefit of these wise measures when,
subsequently, the Mediterranean and Baltic fleets pre-
sented a problem of infinite perplexity to the Adminis
tration.

On November 30th occurred the disaster of Sinope,
when the brave little Turkish squadron, with flags
flying, refusing to surrender, was destroyed by six
Russian sail of the line. Report said that of four
thousand Turks but a few hundred wounded prisoners
survived. The Allied Fleets could have easily been
moved up from Besika Bay to their defence, but
through no fault of the English or French fighting
men, war not having been declared by the Allies, the
appeal of the Turkish admiral for help was overlooked
at Constantinople. It may have been that too much
security was placed on the honour of Russia, as neither
had she yet rnade a formal declaration of war, but
probably the grave blunder was caused by a mis-
understanding of the naval discretionary -powers. It is
related that when the captain of the only vessel that
escaped described the calamity at Constantinople, the
Grand Vizier, in scorn and anger, spat in the speaker's

' " Naval Administration," page 103. — Sir John Henry Briggs.

8 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1853 face. Doubtless, the Tsar had seen that to wait until
the Allied Fleets were in the Black Sea, was to be idle
till his maritime supremacy there was at an end. He
well knew that, with their presence, his war ships would
be driven off the high seas into port, and Russia as a
naval power for practical purposes would cease to
exist.

The Emperor of the French used the indignation of
France and England, consequent on the tidings of the
Sinope catastrophe, as a lever to thwart the diplomacy
which aimed at averting hostilities.

The passionless judgment of to-day, which can
calmly review the events of the fifties, was not a factor
' in the councils of the British public at that juncture,
and, although negotiations for peace might, even as late
as the commencement of January, 1854, have been
carried to a successful issue (for a war three thousand
miles away could hardly have been an attractive pros-
pect), the Western Powers intimated to the Tsar that
his ships must remain in port, or be " constrained to
return to Sevastopol."

On January 4th, the Fleets of England and France
moved up into the great dreary sea, whose ancient name,
Axine, or inhospitable, was changed by the Greeks into
Euxine, or hospitable. It was the Turks who, used to
the numerous ports and sheltering harbours of the
Archipelago, hating its stormy waters and long
stretches of seaboard without havens,- gave to it the
modern designation of Black Sea.

The impression made upon the minds of the men who
saw the magnificent Armada, was deep and lasting, for it
held its own bravely under all plain skil, with only a
slight breeze, against the strong current running from
the Black Sea through the Bosphorus. The grandeur
of that vast array of line-of-battle ships, transports and
frigates, was not lessened even by the presence of the
fussy steamers, which proved useful enough when
towing was required. The stupendous naval architec-

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 9

ture of to-day invariably suggests strength and power, 1854
but, from a picturesque point of view, wheels seem to
have taken the place of wings, and clumsiness and bulk
the stately lines of naval sailing vessels. No longer
does a ship of war ride with the old grace in the
calm and the storm, going with the winds as if swayed
by the same spirit, but holding her own in tempest-
tossed seas, as if her course were kept by inherent
sympathy, instead of by Titanic mechanical force.

The presence of the Allied Fleets in Besika Bay had
been no affront to the Tsar, but now the comforting
material assurance given to Turkish diplomacy proved
also a menace to Russia, whose importance she did not
underestirnate.

The Queen (3,100 tons, carrying 116 guns, mostly
32-pounders), in which the majority of the letters in this
book were written, was a beautiful three-decker, the
first launched after Her Majesty's accession.* The
admiral signalled : " The ships and territories of
Turkey throughout the Black Sea are to be protected
under all circumstances from aggression." t

The following day the Queen is at Sinope, alas !
another instance of " Up the English came too late,"
for Admiral Nackimoff and his Russian squadron are
by this time safely under the shelter of the forts of
Sevastopol.

• " Life of Vice-Admiral Lord Lyons, G.C.B.," page 140. — Captain Eardley
Wilmot, R.N.

t Log of the Queen,

CHAPTER II.

There is an unwritten law which is specially binding
on those who accept the responsibility of rescuing corre-
spondence from oblivion : undoubted historical, literary,
or biographical interest should always justify posthumous
publication. When a writer can no longer suppress
nor explain what may have been penned impulsively,
with no thought of the hurried words being seen by
any but the loving and lenient eyes of home, and, as
were the following letters, often scribbled midst the din
and confusion of warfare, it is with diffidence that an
attempt is made to select from a mass of correspon-
dence that which shall prove most acceptable to the
public.

Skilful experts in strategy, tactics and command,
some of whom either visited or served in the camps,
have well described the military aspects of the cam-
paign in the Crimea, but of the work done by the
Navy in the Black Sea many of these writers speak
only incidentally ; and yet the Fleet was inevitably the
base of the operations. Its readiness at all times to take
an active part in the most serious business of the
Expedition, its invaluable hospital transport accommo-
dation, and its necessarily deterring presence, have not
yet been as adequately commented on, as has the
arduous work effected by the sister Service. The vital
and exhaustless strength of the invaders was their
maritime resources, for, while Russia lost unnumbered
thousands on the march long before they reached their

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. ii

destinations, the Allies had a clear highway by sea for
reinforcements from their military centres in the west
of Europe.

The letters of the Reverend S. Kelson Stothert,
Chaplain to the Naval Brigade, though mere private
records, contain opinions, based on observation, for
which his duties afforded no slight opportunity. From
a distinctly naval point of view, he seriously recognised
the timidity of the policy which hesitated to take
immediate advantage of the forces at the command of
the Allies ; but it must be borne in mind that the
information supplied to the ships was often meagre, not
always accurate, and frequently delayed through stress
of weather.

Naturally even the barest statement of historic facts
possesses attraction for the earnest student, but a
sympathetic onlooker's account of noble deeds and
exciting scenes arouses a more human interest. This Is
materially increased if the narrator has been unable to
hide, as in Kelson Stothert's case, that he frequently
outstepped duty to meet the needs of the hour.

Samuel Kelson Stothert was a descendant of the
Stotherts of Cargen ; he was born on the 31st of
March, 1827. Of a large family two only were sons,
of whom Kelson was the elder. He went to Worcester
College, Oxford, where he took his Bachelor's degree
in 1850, proceeded to his Masters' In 1856, and two
years after gained the LL.D. of Glasgow University,
At Oxford he was the leader, on the Conservative side,
of the Union Debating Club, and had for his chief
opponent the young politician who, later, became
Marquis of Salisbury.

Having chosen the Church as his profession, he was
ordained deacon in 1851, and priest by the Bishop of
Oxford twelve months after ; henceforward his life was
consecrated to duty. The sphere of Naval Chaplain
then appeared to offer more scope for his energies than
that of an English parish. Stout-hearted and fearless

12 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

he was eager for adventure, and in the early years of
the fifties, when the equilibrium of Europe was oscil-
lating between peace and war, it was probable that he
foresaw a life of less monotony in the service of his
Sovereign, than that which he then dreaded in the
ordinary routine of his calling.

The union of two distinct individualities in his
nature rendered him singularly strong and self-reliant.
Although the priest was dominant, the spirit of the
soldier never forsook him. The cassock has often
concealed the warrior, and the tonsure appeared where
a helmet might well have been worn ; but it is rare to
find a son of the Church writing so freely of naval and
military matters, while disclaiming any r61e but that of
non-combatant.

His sympathies touched human effort at such varied
points, it was well that he obtained the opportunity to
mix with men of action which a Naval Chaplaincy, in
1853, presented. Although endowed with intellectual
tastes, his lot for many years was not cast among
kindred minds. The love of learning for its own sake
is not a common attribute of officers of the naval
service ; though here and there we read of a meteor
crossing his orbit and illuming his way ; and the
excitement of war made up to him, in some degree, for
the lack of literary comradeship. He had occasional
despondent moods, for his devotion to study increased
as time went on, and he found great difficulty in
procuring any kind of books in Constantinople. It was
evident that he made the best even of deprivation, and
hailed with gladness the occurrence of the few rare
opportunities of intercourse with congenial men ; his
fine instinct of courtesy must have always prevented
any appearance of dissatisfaction with his daily
companions.

Home and University life comprised all he knew of
the world when he sailed for the East, and those with
whom he had hitherto come in contact had been

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FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 13

invariably attracted by hjs intelligence and manliness,
as well as by the ready kindness which was character-
istic of him to the end of his life. His habitual temper
of mind when he joined the Navy appears to have been
an eagerness to be where there was most work to be
done. He chafed at delay, and the patience he mani-
fested was an acquired quality, for his inherent spirit
was of a more alert and mettlesome nature.

Though reserved and often fearful of his own power,
— lest he should fail in duty to God or man — he
possessed no small degree of personal daring, and a
grim courage he frequently disparaged in words, that
was amply proved by his stalwart deeds. The invol-
untary repugnance he frequently expressed to the
revolting scenes into which his duty led, and where he
was invariably so ready to press, resulted from that
delicate physical sensibility over which complete control
is not always possible. While appreciating to the full
that sympathy which is the outcome of kinship in
dread and suffering, he was very intolerant of his own
weakness if tempted to complain.

Strong convictions in early life often indicate mental
power of that ruling and independent order exigency
assails in vain, and to which the serviceableness of
temporising does not appeal. Experience may bring
wisdom and forbearance, but calm judgment is the fruit
natural only to later years. Partisanship and zealous
outcry against injustice are the wild, though fragrant
weeds that flourish best in the garden of youth. If, in
the following pages. Kelson Stothert's opinions some-
times appear to be expressed in an arbitrary manner, it
must not be forgotten that they were written for the
home circle alone, and that the long war had terminated
before he had attained the age of thirty.

While not lacking a sense of humour, he took life
altogether too seriously, was embarked on too grave an
enterprise to be very ardently cheerful, and was so
constituted, that while disease and death were round

14 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

him on every side, he did not greatly concern himself
to cultivate undue hopefulness of spirit, as some were
wont to do at that time. The facts were so significant,
the blundering so apparent, the end so out of reckoning,
that he was often goaded to bitter invective against the
tardiness which appeared to imply expression of weak-
ness and irresolution to the enemy. His strongly
worded verdicts upon certain momentous acts possess at
least the ring of that absolute sincerity which has a
tendency to inspire confidence.

In his records of local details and temporary con-
ditions, we are constantly brought in touch with men
who were, by turns, the victors and the vanquished,
and can discern hints of that intuition which developed
in later years, into a swift and sure power of reading
men and motive alike.

As time went on Kelson Stothert's intellectual out-
look widened, and he formed many firm and lasting
friendships with men of great ability and renown ; the
late Bishop of Oxford and Lord Lytton among others.
His varied knowledge and high personal character won
for him both esteem and affection. Russell Lowell
quaintly says that "a letter which is not mainly about
the writer loses its prime flavour," but the chief element
of egotism in the following correspondence is only an
occasional unconscious betrayal of a courage keen, and
infectious enough, to create in the mind of the reader a
sense of personal participation. Sympathy is a primi-
tive and universal emotion, and it is well known that
individual complaints were only echoes of the general
invective of the period against the continual tardiness
displayed by all the responsible departments, especially
against those which ought to have expedited the removal
of the Allied forces from cholera and fever-stricken
Varna, where so many thousands of lives were so use-
lessly sacrificed. In the Fleet no excuse could be found
for the avertible evils that were rife during the campaign,
and when the "pestilence that walketh at noonday"

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 15

was rivalling the enemy in the number of victims it
claimed, words were uttered, with a simple directness of
meaning, which did not ill-become men who were
looking Death hourly in the face. Those evils, which
continued so long, may well perplex posterity as they
did the sufferers themselves, who have been rightly
named pieces of the big game that was played for
European stakes ; but, on the arena, the weakness of
the moves could be more readily detected, and fre-
quently the failure and disaster that ensued had there
been foretold.

Kelson Stothert believed that he would find con-
genial work in the Navy, and doubtless hoped for
unexpected developments, but he could not then foresee
that, to the end of his life, the effects of the hardships
and exposure during the war would make him liable at
intervals to attacks of acute physical suffering. No one
either in the Fleet or in the Army could have con-
jectured the vortex of misery to which they were
all hastening ; could it have been predicted, the stoutest
courage might well have quailed.

When the long struggle had wearied our sailors and
soldiers of Turks, Frenchmen, and of the wild alien
horde of every nation, and of no nation — those human
vultures the tocsin of battle brings from the foul and
secret places of the earth — when his comrades were
indifferent about everything except the voyage home
and the promotions and rewards, which many, alas !
never received. Kelson Stothert was strenuously
labouring to realise a great purpose. He had long
been devising how the first English church in Turkey
could be built and endowed. It was at length erected
at Ortaquoi, a suburb of Constantinople, through his
sole instrumentality ; and, considering how difficult an
undertaking it was, under the adverse circumstances
his letters describe, he might well rejoice in such a
memorial of his hard campaign. Being a true member
of the Church militant, he was proud of having seen

i6 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

service, and wore his Turkish, Crimean and Baltic
medals, on all occasions of ceremony.

He was chaplain to the following ships of the Royal
Navy : La Hogue, Galatea, Edinburgh, Liffey, Queen,
Victoria, Diamond, Britannia, Revenge and St.
Vincent, either in the Baltic, the Black Sea, the
Mediterranean, or the Home stations.

He was also Chaplain to the Caledonia, Flag-ship of
Lord Clarence Paget, and on retiring from the Navy
in 1869, became Incumbent of Holy Trinity Church,
Malta, and Chaplain to the Bishop of Gibraltar. He
was chosen to accompany a Special Embassy to Egypt,
of which Lord Clarence Paget was chief, the object
being to invest the Viceroy with the Order of the
Bath.

The Reverend S. KELSON STOTHERT, M.A., LL.D.,

CHAPLAIN TO THE NAVAL BRIGADE.

CHAPTER III.

Geographical details and formal statements appear to
have been inevitable in all the home letters of those
voyagers to foreign shores before and during the fifties.
The increase of travel having been greater during the
last forty years than at any other period, the reader is now
frequently able to fill in from his own personal impres-
sions special items that may have missed the observa-
tion of those writers. We find that when Kelson
Stothert wishes to gives his correspondents an accurate
idea of certain scenes that were new to him, he occa-
sionally refers to his birthplace for illustration. The
varied beauty of Bath lends itself readily to comparison,
and, in his mind, it was doubtless often pitted satisfac-
torily against that of cities more renowned. These
allusions gave his descriptions a familiar meaning, and
probably brought those to whom they were addressed
more in touch with his actual surroundings.

TO HIS MOTHER.

At sea, off Holyhead,

7th March, 1854.
I commence to write you as I promised, but the jerking of
the screw and the rolling of the ship will, I fear, make my
letter somewhat illegible.

We sailed at one o'clock to-day from Liverpool with a heavy
cargo and four passengers. I have come to the conclusion
that the "modern intelligence" of which people speak so
highly as the peculiar characteristic of the day, as far as the
mercantile classes are concerned, is only a peculiar ability to
" do " their fellow creatures. Although told on Saturday that

1 8 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES,

1854 I should have a cabin to myself, it turns out that there are three
others to share it. There are, I believe, six cabins in the ship,
but all except the one we occupy are filled vt^ith cargo. Two
of my fellow-martyrs are young merchants going to Constan-
tinople ; the third is a foreigner and a traveller who has been
all over the East, and is now on his way to investigate the
Greek insurrection and the Fleet in the Black Sea. He is a
very clever linguist and a great scholar, speaking English
much more finely than you or I. His name I do not know.
He may be a German savant. I fervently hope he will not
prove to be a Jew.

It is fearfully uncomfortable four people living in a confined
space.

It is blowing hard right in our teeth, and I am going to bed.
Good night.

Friday. T-Y-v^x since we started it has been blowing hard,
and you cannot imagine the needless discomfort in which we
find ourselves. Four of us in a small cabin with one washing-
stand between the lot ! If I thought it possible to make the
owners of the steamer pay, I would certainly stop at Malta and
go on by an Austrian Lloyd boat. We are now a good bit to
the westward, having stood out here to get a fair wind. We hope
to sight Spain in two days, and, in four, to be at Gibraltar for
twelve hours. No possibility of landing, however, for the
Spaniards, from inscrutable reasons of their own, insist upon
considering England a plague-stricken country, and the
Governor gives way to them.

Saturday night. — This is the time at sea consecrated to
" Sweethearts and wives " ; I have neither, so, Dear, I write to
you.

We have seen two ships to-day, and that is all. We are
nearly abreast of Cape Finisterre, about a thousand miles off
the coast. It is now blowing very hard indeed, and we expect
a rough night. The worst of it is we are going further and
further out of our course. When I come home, unless in a
man-of-war, I will not adventure this voyage in a merchant
ship, but will return through Vienna and Paris. I have really
nothing to say, except to report the weather. My journal is
equally barren.

Sunday. — We have had a finish sort of day, but as usual the
wind dead in our teeth. I had service on deck, and could not

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 19

help thinking, as I read the Litany, how many at home were 1854
joining fervently in our prayer for all who travel by land and
by water. My congregation did not seem much edified ! The
savant, who is a Hungarian,* was my clerk, and is a devout
Protestant of the Broad Church party.

TO HIS FATHER.

At Sea,
St. Patrick's Day, 17th March, 1854.
In the evening.
We hope to reach Malta in two or three days at the latest.
The weather has been beautiful from Cape Spartel. We left
Gibraltar at " gun fire " on Wednesday evening, and in half-an-
hour the sunlight had faded from the mountains and the rocks ;
the hills rapidly became purple ; at last, night covered all with
her dark wings, and we went on our way. By dawn next
morning we were miles away, and all the day were coasting
the shores of Granada. No contrast could be greater than our
progress now, compared with that in the rolling gales we
encountered in " Biscay's Sleepless Bay." The coast of
Granada is of the same geological appearance as that of
Andalusia, but even yet more imposing and grand. The
cliffs near the sea have been washed into long ridges, and at
the back of the sea cliffs, in an easterly direction, are the chain
of Sierra Nevada, snow-capped hills, as their name implies.
Behind these lies the archiepiscopal city of Granada. We are
about twenty miles off the land, and fifty from the Sierra
Nevada hills. The air is so clear that they do not look more
distant than London from Bathwick Hill, and are 11,600 feet
high, although to all appearance they are not so lofty as
Hampton rocks from the canal side-walk. Our glasses bring
to light many a romantic town and village halfway down the
hills, and looks so near we could almost fancy in the
evening that we ought to have been invited to a gay
"tertulia," to dance the "bolero" with the fair senoritas.
From the many chimneys we see (apparently for mining pur-

* This Hungarian was Eber, who afterwards became a most congenial and
intimate friend to Kelson Stothert. Russell wrote of him : —

" A Hungarian who had been a patriot in '48, who was a correspondent in '54,
now with the Turks, afterwards General under Garibaldi. Member of Hun-
garian Diet and of the mixed Committee of Austro-Hungarian Dual Government,
on military business— <juerulous, sarcastic, capable and despondent, though brave
as a Hon."

20 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 poses) more than one large town must skirt the sea. It was
very hot yesterday, more than eighty degrees in the shade, yet
we did not feel oppressed ; the air is so pure and exhilarating,
and oh, the nights ! The moon and stars seem to scintillate
light. The water is very phosphorescent, and we watch with
interest the gambols of the porpoises and dogfish close under
our bows.

To-day we saw a good part of the African coast, somewhere
about Algiers, but it was too far off to inspect. We amused
ourselves for hours shooting at turtle, which, allured by the
heat of the sun, in great numbers floated by us asleep. We
did not succeed in bagging any, although sincerely desirous of
change from Calipash and Calipee. The sleeping beauties
were more than once, however, rudely awakened by a musket
ball bouncing upon their backs at short range. Their shells
are so hard that a round ball glances off. It was very disap-
pointing to see the creatures dive below as if they were shot.
Afterwards, having made a rude mould with a knife and a
piece of chalk, we cast a conical ball, like that of a Minid
rifle ; but a breeze sprung up and our friends cut their stick.
I am convinced that the conical ball would have finished some
of them, and we intend to try to-morrow if we have the
chance. We live on deck under an awning, reading, talking
and eating oranges, of which we purchased a large number in
Gibraltar at is. 6d. a hundred.

If you want a good speculation, send out coal to Gibraltar
and Malta. The freight alone is 45 s. per ton, and the cost at
these places is enormpus.

Saturday. — The sea is all in a bubble as we are passing
across the Gulf of Lyons, and I shall not write to-day. A
robin was blown on the deck, perhaps from England ; he
would not stay, small blame to him.

Monday. — Yesterday we had evening service on board, and I
gave my congregation a short sermon from the Epistle of the
day. In the evening we passed the barren rock of Galita, and
saw the spot where H.M.S. Avenger was lost many years ago
with five hundred men. She struck on some rocks called
Sorelle, and went down in a moment.

To-day we have seen Pantellaria, a Sicilian island, con-
taining one town and a fortress. We miss very much the
beautiful scenery of the Spanish coast.

- FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 21

Towards evening we expect a distant view of Etna, and 1854
to-night hope to anchor at Valetta. We shall stay in Malta
twenty-four hours. I have some letters of introduction there.

TO HIS MOTHER.

Messirie's Hotel,
Constantinople.
■ March 28th, 1854.

We arrived here safely about noon yesterday, rather tired.
I wrote home from Malta, and doubtless by this time you
have received my letter.

We saw all the lions in Malta, except the Convent of the
Capuchins, where they dry and bake the bodies of the
deceased members of their fraternity ; but for this none of us
recollected to enquire. We went over the Grand Master's
Palace, the Church of St. John the Baptist (the former Church
of the Knights), and thence off in the train to Civita Vecchia,
formerly called Notabile, a most interesting city. We left
Malta after a sojourn of a few days, and took in forty or fifty
passengers, thirty of them in the cabin.

The next day we passed the island of Cytheria, now called
Cerigo, where I believe Venus is said to have risen from the
sea !

At daylight (two days after we left Melita) we sighted
Cape Matapan. From this point we sailed N.N.E. Next
morning we found ourselves at anchor in the roadstead of
Syra, of no notoriety in ancient times as far as I can recollect,
but now the most important place for commerce in the whole
of modern Greece.

Here we landed and walked up and down. There are
25,000 people, but not a name to a street ; no drains, cleanli-
ness, pavements, nor any mark of civilisation whatever. We
dined at the Hotel d'Angleterre, the first in the town, which
we found some degrees below the dignity of the lowest public-
house in Bath. We had, however, excellent red wine, made
on the island, and similar in quality to the vin du pays we
obtain here. The vin du pays is the best thing in Greece, the
Greek Church not excepted. We went into two or three of
the churches in Syra ; one of them (unfinished) is of Parian
marble. It is dedicated to St. Nicholas ; perhaps the Emperor
of Russia — who knows ? At all events, he is paying for it.

We had a chat with the " papas," as the priests are called.
Many persons were in the church, crossing themselves as they

22 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 stared at us, and rubbing the knees of pictures with bits of
coffee, which they afterward devoured with great gusto.

While we were talking to the priests they began to howl ;
during the rapid reiteration of some part of the service, a
man came in wearing a round hat. He winked and nodded
to the priest, and the priest returned the salutation.

While they were " nid, nid, nodding," to one another in the
House of God we departed and left them to their profanations.
The priests wear no robes, and they have not even the sem-
blance of sanctity. They are evidently of the lowest class,
and their countenances are stupid and gross.

The churches are all built in tawdry imitation of the old
Byzantine style. Walton church is a modern specimen.

We met some agents of the Greek Government who had
come to Syra to stir up the people to insurrection. They
spoke English and entered freely into conversation with us,
asking what was thought of their question, and whether
England would help them ? We told them plainly that their
movement was sudden and unauthorised, and that England
and France would put them down in three months. We also
said that in England it was thought to be a movement in
favour of Russia. They were very indignant, and we were
afterwards told that we had acted indiscreetly in speaking so
openly in such a place. There, to my great regret, my
Hungarian friend departed for Athens.

If you want a good speculation, send a steamer line to ply
between the islands. We left at night, and made for Con-
stantinople, and were at daybreak opposite Scio, formerly
Chios, famed in later times, during the recent war of indepen-
dence in Greece, as the scene of a barbarous massacre, and
anciently claimed as the birthplace of " the blind old man of
Scio's rocky isle." This is, indeed, historic land. When at
Syra we could see close at hand Delos, the birthplace of ApoUo-
Naipos, on whose account was commenced the Persian invasion
of Greece.

On Sunday I was offering up the prayers of our own
church, three thousand miles away. At nearly the same hour
we both (you and I) were saying the same prayer, and utter-
ing the self-same glorious psalm. But what a difference in the
scene ! There we were, floating calmly on the bosom of the
blue .(Egean, the old Ionia on the right, famed in history both
scriptural and profane ; Scio astern of us, and Scobos, the only
beautiful Greek island, also on our right. Far to the left,
seventy or eighty miles away, a bright cloud, as it were, shone

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 23

with its silver lining beneath the sky. That cloud was the 1854
Thessalian Olympus, so clear are all distant objects in this
transparent air. Stil! more to the north, and yet more visible',
was the promontory of Mount Athos, and Lemnos, whose
ancient cruelty gave a name to " Lemnian Horrors." Then
soon after service we neared the plains of Troy, studded with
cairns and mounds, and evidently the site of old battle-ground.
Ida with its dark hills, no longer the haunts of gods, goddesses
and deer, and the Trojan Olympus filled up the ■ background.
Here we entered the Dardanelles, and at nine o'clock the next
day, the harbour of the city of the Sultan.

I think this Constantinople, and its situation, are the finest
conceivable things in the world, but the moment you set foot
on shore the illusion vanishes. We got through the custom
house upon payment to the Pasha of about 2s. 6d. ; he did
not trouble himself afterwards about contraband goods ; then
we came here. The hotel is very comfortable, and the table
d'hSte a good one, but our expenses will cost nearly £\ z.
day. I cannot get to Varna, where the Fleet is, till Monday
next, then I go in the Retribution.

The streets have no names here, and have not been mended
since the time of Sultan Solyman the First, hundreds of
years ago. I assure you, without joking, that there is not one
of them the same extent or regularity as Avon Street, Bath.
I speak quite within bounds. Of course they are crowded
with men, women, porters, dogs, Turks and Greeks.

The Turks are a fine race of men, and far superior to the
Greeks. I suppose you know the modern are no relation to
the ancient Greeks, but are only a Sclavonic tribe who were
imported by the old natives as their slaves. Upon the disper-
sion of their masters they gradually began to occupy the
historic seats.

The first thing I did after settling here was to have a
Turkish bath, and for this purpose a man of the name of
Pachenham, a captain in some rifle regiment, went with me.
We hesitated somewhat before we could make up our minds
to go in, having a wholesome dread of the travellers' tales we
had heard about the " shampooing ".stance. However, at last
we entered the building. In the outer court we took off our
boots, and were conducted into a room appropriated to
" Pashas," which is the brevet Franks receive, or, at least,
those who pay. Here we disrobed and descended into a bath-
room, clothed in a towel and a pair of wooden clogs. The
air of the room was so hot that I could hardly breathe, and

24 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 my companion also gasped in despair. We sat upon the floor,
but alas ! we were not properly prepared for such a position
(the barbarians having despoiled us of our clothes), and at
last made our way to a cushion, upon which we rolled. Then
pipes, and coffee in tiny cups, thick with the grounds and very
delicious, were brought us, and under the magic influence of
these we surrendered ourselves to the boys. They commenced
gently punching us all over, and giving polite tugs at our legs,:
arms, and fingers, which crack with very little pressure when
one is smoking. By this time we were covered with perspira-
tion and pufiing like grampusses, not at our pipes, but from
the heat. We were soon conducted into a lofty room with a
dome-shaped roof and a marble floor, with marble basins of
hot and cold water all round. Oh ! the heat of that room and
of that floor ! My eyesight left me for a moment, and I sat,
but soon got up again. The bath boy poured some cold
water upon one of the blocks of marble, which allowed me to
approximate myself thereto.

The next process was to be scrubbed all over with a hair brush,
and as if this were not enough, they washed us all over with
soft soap, and then drained us with hot water, and then soaped
us again, and finally collected as much soap as they could with
a sponge made of fibres of the date tree, with which they
covered us as if we were twelfth cakes. They then departed,
and silence reigned supreme.

When we were left in this dilemma my companion and I
consulted what to do. There was no time to lose, we were
fast melting away. So we agreed that there could be no harm
in washing off the soap, which, indeed, seemed the right thing,
for in a few minutes the attendants reappeared, and freed us
from such poor remnants of clothing as had been given us, and
furnished us with a covering, and wrapping turbans round our
heads, made regular Turks of us. We then once more
ascended to our "divan," where we found sofas laid and
sherbet ready. Oh, the delicious coolness of the room, the
garments and the drink, compared with our " baking."

If I were a good Mussulman I should say we were then in
the Seventh Heaven. After duly putting away the sherbet
we extended ourselves upon the sofas, and were carefully
covered from every draught of air, and once again pipes and
coffee were brought.

The Oriental experience ended, and it took a long time, we
were dressed and allowed to descend, paying about 2s. 6d.
We had done nothing for ourselves for two hours, except puff

FHOM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 25

and swallow, speak, perspire and blow. The Turks spend whole 1854
days in bathing. We hope to go again on Friday.

To-day we have been all over the districts of Galata, Pera
and Stamboul. We have seen the bazaars, which my com-
panion says are not comparable to those of India, and I must
confess, although I thought them interesting, they are not
equal to what I had heard of them. Then we walked round
the mosques of Sultans Mahmoud, Solyman and Bajazet, and
also saw what Byzantine remains there are. These consist of
a subterranean reservoir, containing one thousand columns ;
and in the Hippodrome is a bronze column of three snakes.
This is the celebrated column of which so much has been said ;
the heads are gone and the column broken. Beside this is a
monument erected by the Emperor Theodosius ; some walls
also remain. To-morrow we see the mosques, and have
obtained a firman for that purpose. This costs ;^20, but a
number have clubbed together, as one firman will admit any
number, so that the expense is thus lessened.

The cannon foundry is a fine place, fitted up with English
machinery. There was a Nasmyth's hammer, and when it
was first put up they sent for the Sultan to see it work. His
Majesty arrived, and they beat away at an anchor and broke the
machine ! The Sultan cried, " Mashallah ! " and departed, and
the hammer still remains. This was three years ago. Fires
are very frequent here, and there are two watch towers, one at
Galata and the other at Stamboul, to give notice of conflagra-
tions. We ascended the Great Tower at Stamboul, and
had coffee at the top. The view (of the Golden Horn, the Sea
of Marmora, and the Bosphorus) is very fine, indeed.

There is a report here that 15,000 Russians have crossed
the Danube. They have deserted Circassia, and retreated to
Sevastopol. The weather is very cold, although we are
thirteen degrees south of you, or thereabouts. I must now say
good-bye, with best love to all.

P. S.— Tell my father that an order goes this mail by the
British ambassador for 30,000 ten-inch shells. Zohrab doubt-
less will have a finger in the pie. I learn from a dragoman of
the Embassy they might be got for Curucelyn if a handsome
commission were offered ! They will, however, arrive here too
late. In six months Constantinople will be in ruins. 300,000
Russians are on the march, at least Lord Stratford has sent
word home. I have written this letter in a great hurry, and
am afraid you will not be able to read it. If I can, I will write
from Varna.

CHAPTER IV.

The " Eastern Question" had long been a many-sided,
vexed problem, and during the autumn of 1853
European statesmen had found diplomacy a hazardous
game.

It must have been specially obvious to all other
nations at this time that Russia's endeavour, as hereto-
fore, was to create embarrassing situations for the
Porte. Week by week the tension increased, while the
English Cabinet was acting as if the interests of
Britain were identical with those of France, and for
this there was scant historical precedent.

The impartial critic is at a loss to justify any alliance
which practically ignored the two great Powers,
Prussia and Austria. The latter, with an invading
army in the provinces close to her borders, had
assuredly cognate reasons to be principally considered
in all negotiations which aimed at defeating the
encroachments of the Tsar. Although war with Russia
for some time had appeared not improbable, our
Administration had taken only feeble steps, in secret,
to make ready, lest the knowledge of what was being
done might prejudice the peaceful solution of the
international disputes.* '

Although the Foreign Office and the Treasury
were not working in harmony, when the tidings

* " The probability of. war with Russia was long foreseen, and we had ample
time to make our preparations. " " Naval Administration, ' ' page III. — Sir John
Henry Briggs.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 27

of the disaster at Sinope arrived, the English people 1854
were roused from their apathy and, as well as
free expression of anger at the cruelty which had been
displayed, there was instant recognition that Russia
had abused her prerogative in seeking the surrender of
the Turkish Fleet before she had actually declared
war.

On the 2 1 St of February all hope of avoiding
hostilities came to an end, and the conference of
Ambassadors at Constantinople was concluded. The
Western Powers were now committed to a struggle
that would speedily test to its utmost the capacity of
the Services, and especially the power of the British
Navy to bear the strain for which the preparation had
been so meagre.

The unready condition of both Navy and Army
made little difference to the eager spirit which now
began to animate all classes. Vast munitions of war
were popularly spoken about as if voting for them in
Parliament could ensure their instant manufacture.

The following letter gives the impression which the
Turk at home made upon the writer, and suggests a
certain increasing spirit of incredulity which is some-
times evoked in such a crisis, even before the gains of
" a famous victory " are reckoned. The writer, while
anxious for the war to begin, appears at the moment to
be dubious about the value of the race to be defended.

TO HIS FATHER.

'Constantinople,

April 4th, 1854.
I have only time to-night to write you a short note before
■going to bed and packing up for my journey to Kavarna
to-morrow. Intelligence has just reached us of the Declaration
of War by the Western Powers, and all is excitement here. I
should have gone to Varna last week by the Inflexible, but
upon starting for the ship the Douaniers took possession of
my boat, and insisted upon looking over all my boxes. The
delay was so great that by the time I had got clear of these

28 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 vagabonds the steamer was gone. Being an officer in
H.B.M.'s service they had no right, I afterwards found, to
touch my baggage, but they wanted money. It is all nonsense
talking about preserving the integrity of the Ottoman
Empire ; they never had any, how should they preserve it ?
The Greeks certainly rank higher than the Turks in corrup-
tion, and this is paying the former a high compliment. I have
seen some of the speeches in the House upon the Turkish
question, and it is amusing on this spot to read the solemn
comments upon the " progress of the Ottoman Empire during
the last fifty years," " the patriotism of the Turks, and the sacri-
fices they are making for the sake of their country," etc., etc.
You should hear the roars of laughter with which these
important facts are communicated to the habitues of
Constantinople. I will give you an illustration of Turkish
patriotism which will serve as a specimen of all the rest.
Three or four weeks ago a certain Pacha had orders to provide
Government with a stated quantity of rice. He wrote back word
that he would obey the order, and out of the love he bore
the Sultan he would omit to charge the cost of transit. He got
himself gazetted among the other lovers of their country, and
sent down the rice, but totally forgot to pay the carriage.
Added to this, he levied a tax upon each family in his
Pachalite to pay back to himself the cost of the carriage which
he had forgotten ! He thus netted, it is said, 16,000 piastres
by his patriotic act. This a Turkish gentleman told me
himself, and laughed heartily and applaudingly at the clever-
ness of the Pacha. The English public would, I suppose, only
hear the best half of the story if the matter were mentioned.
The progress the Turks are making is to be accounted for in
this way — the despatches home always speak in diplomatic
language of each succeeding Governor, or Pacha, or Bey, as
being better than the last. This is all diligently repeated by
Lord Palmerston and others. Credat Judaeiis, I dare say he
whispers to himself, and so the Turkish progress is beautifully
demonstrated to the country at large. It is time indeed that
they made some progress. They here and there build larger
harems, and cheat Franks more than they did ; and wear
Frank dresses and wash less. But they do not mend their
roads, nor reduce their dirt, nor do any work, nor widen their
streets, nor love arrack less, and this is all the improvement of
which they can boast. As to education, there is no such
thing. When a man becomes a Pacha he takes to learning — .
what do you think ? Nothing less than to read and write his

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 29

own language. It is a fact that not ten men out of a hundred 1854
can read the Turkish characters. Most of the business is
transacted by Greeks and Armenians.

The Greeks are all ordered to leave the city in ten days.
We expect a disturbance ; on Saturday night an English seaman
was stabbed by a Greek without the slightest provocation.
The man died on the spot and the Greek walked away. Three
or four frigates are gone to Athens, one of them English. I
find my Hungarian friend* whom we left at Syra is the Times
correspondent in Greece. They give him .£^60 a month and
all his expenses. He is a very able man. One of the sub-
editors of the Times staying here told me about him. I send
you all this hurried news as it may be interesting to you. I
long to be in England again, for there is not a soul here to
communicate with. Plenty of acquaintances, but for me not
one warm loving heart.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

20th April, 1854.

We are just off to Odessa at the distance of about twenty
miles, but we shall not attempt to take it, as it is defended by
many strong forts and 40,000 men, and the water is too shallow
for our larger ships to go in and shell the place. The English
consul, whom the Russians attempted to detain, informed us
that the Ftiry and the French steamer Decartes have been
hovering about, and twelve small Russian merchantmen have
fallen to their lot. That will probably be all the prize money
this war will bring to the Fleet.

We left Baldjik on Monday last, after a pleasant stay in
that beautiful (?) Turkish town. Just as we tripped anchor
large masses of cavalry lined the heights. We were too far
off to distinguish what they were, but as the steamer we left
on guard made no sign I suppose it was " all right." The day
before we sailed (Sunday) some of the officers and I refreshed
ourselves after a week's confinement by a walk on shore.
Among other lions we went to see some Tartar prisoners, who
had been captured by the Turkish forces. There were five of
these heroes, some of them children, but they were shut up in
a cage like so many wild beasts, in a corner of the Pacha's
stables. As we were leaving the prison the Pacha hailed us ;

*Mr. Eber.

30 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 we could distinguish "Telibouk" and "Cavveh," about the
only Turkish words we knew, and some of us entered his
dwelling, and in a few minutes were lolling on his divan with
a Turkish chibouk in each of our mouths and coffee in long
cups by our sides. The old fellow laughed and chatted away
to us in Turkish, of which we understood at most one word in
ninety. But his coffee was good and his laughter catching,
so we spent our time merrily enough. He was engaged in the
" administration of justice," as we should call it in England.
Many suitors were brought in and were "suited" in no time
by the Reis or secretary. The great man talked to us and
tossed an orange to the ceiling and caught it again. One fine
suppliant was brought in by two " policemen," and told a long
and piteous tale. The secretary blew a cloud and the Pacha
indulged in a patriotic speech to us, much after the style one
talks to a baby in England : " Bim, Bom, Moscof, Ingleesy ! "
at the same time pointing to our ships. He meant the
English are going to " Bim, Bom " the Russians. To this we
assented by a nod and a sipping of coffee, which must have
impressed the Pacha with a great idea of our English gaiety.
In the midst of our discussion upon politics " as aforesaid," we
heard a squall, and found that the officials were bundling the
suitor down the stairs, and were making many applications of
feet to the voluminous unmentionables of the "defendant."
My companions and I burst into a hearty laugh, the Court
informing us that the unfortunate individual was only a Greek
and a Christian ! I could not help congratulating myself that
I was neither the one nor the other in their acceptance of the
terms, which are synonymous to the Turkish mind. In the
Mahommedan vernacular a " Christian dog " means a " Greek
villain " ; and a " Greek villain " means a " Christian dog."
Of what religion they consider the English -to be I do not
know. They hate the " Christians," that is the " Greeks," and
with excellent reason too. This is the explanation which may
be given, for the great abuse we hear said the Crescent heaps
upon the Cross ; and sadly fallen from its pristine beauty is
that symbol of our world-wide creed. When a Turk speaks
of a " Christian dog," he does not mean you and me, of whom
he knows nothing, but is simply designating a Greek, of whom
he knows a great deal too much.

We left the Pacha soon with many profound bows and
acknowledgments. I almost fancy I have had a crick in
my back ever since from excessive lowliness of deportment
upon the occasion.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 31

When this will reach you I do not know, but it is always 1854
best to have a letter ready, so I will leave it to remain until
some steamer goes. I have, as you see, really nothing to
communicate.

Although there was no combined plan between the
Allied Fleets in the Black Sea till May, their ships
were occupied cruising and watching lest Russian
vessels should venture out of port, which they actually
did now and again. On the 12th of April the little
Fury (six guns), under the very nose of the enemy's
fortifications, perceiving an adventure, hoisted Austrian
colours till she came alongside a Russian ship, when
she ran up her own and was nearly cut off by sailing
frigates.*

The Queen, Captain Michell,f carrying 960 men,
was in Kavarna Bay on Thursday, April 6th, when the
Tiger, under the flag of the ill-fated Captain Giffard,
arrived ; and from that ship Kelson Stothert joined the
Queen.\ On Sunday, April 9th, her rigging was
manned and six cheers given for war being declared.
On the following Saturday the Ville de Paris fired a
salute of twenty-one guns and the Queen manned and
cheered with our allies " War's declared ! '' There was
unbounded enthusiasm in the Fleet. The chaplain had
joined his ship just in time for the actual commence-
ment of hostilities. Anchored off Odessa on Thursday,
April 20th, the Queen cleared for action and loaded with
shot.§ Her log tells of much occupation, but mentions
also that the Arethusa (fifty guns) weighed, clearing
away wardroom, cabins and bulkheads and proceeded
to examine an Austrian barque in the offing.

* It was afterwards said that a certain lieutenant on board sent for his best
coat that he might look smart when taken prisoner.

t Afterwards Sir Frederick Michell, whose nephew was then one of his naval
cadets, and became in course of time General Sir Evelyn Wood, V.C, G.C.B.,
G.C.M.G.

% Log of the Queen.

32 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 Odessa, which is said to have copied something
from almost every city in Europe, has been called a
dull town and a brisk port, with its two moles, its
bronze statue of the Duke of Richelieu (once Odessa's
Governor), its fine position and handsome stone build-
ings, must have appeared very formidable for attack,
and the great risk to neutral merchant vessels in the
harbour was a deterrent that could not be ignored.

On the 22 nd a lieutenant and fifty rank and file of
Royal Marines were sent from the Queen to the
Terrible (twenty-one guns), and at daylight the
steamers of the Fleet weighed and proceeded into the
Bay.* Our chaplain describes the naval action to his
mother with a curious familiarity and keen appreciation
of the art of war.

Thursday Evening. — We ' are at the moment quietly-
anchored in line of battle about three miles off the batteries of
Odessa. We have been in sight of the place all day, and this
evening crowds of people have come down to have a look at
us. We hoisted our colours about four o'clock, but no answer
was made to our flag of defiance. Odessa seems to be a very
important place as far as I can make out with a glass, and the
prominent buildings are finer than I have seen since I left
Liverpool. It is apparently a city of palaces. I should say
from its length it must have 100,000 inhabitants. What the
intentions of the Admiral may be I do not know. Probably
we shall bombard, although why we should do so it is difficult
to say, except that we cannot otherwise demolish the fortifica-
tions. The French, it is rumoured, have openly expressed
their repugnance to such a proceeding, where not the soldiers,
but women and children would be the great sufferers. This is
indeed a cogent reason for sparing bloodshed, although it
is quite contrary to their usual custom in war, as was plenti-
fully shown in Algeria and elsewhere. Some whisper that the
French are politic enough to practice the well-known
aphorism : " Treat your friends as if they would become
enemies, and your enemies as if they are likely to become
your friends." However, we are fully prepared for all emer-
gencies ; every gun in our ship is shotted, and we are equally

* Log of the Queen.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 33

ready for attack or defence. Probably the earlier operations 1854
will be confined to cutting out expeditions, of which there is
likely to be a sprinkling, several Russian ships being in the
harbour under false colours. We have had a steamer cruising
in and out among them all the afternoon, but it was impossible
to board them in broad daylight, as the guns of the batteries
would have spoiled sport. I have just been to look at the
place to-night. It is apparently lighted with gas. There is a
row of bright lamps some two miles distant, which, I suppose,
is the principal street. From all I have seen and heard, the
Russians are the first people in Europe for public improve-
ments, not even excepting our neighbours the French.
Daylight to-morrow may give us new ideas.

Sunday Evening. — We had a quiet day, there being so
much swell that no offensive operations could be carried on.
On Friday the Caton, French steamer, was sent in to the
Governor (for I must go back in my narrative), to claim repar-
ation for the insult offered to the English flag of truce in
firing on it ten days ago. It was demanded that the Governor
should dismiss all French and English vessels, and yield up as
prizes all Russian ships in port, with their munitions of war.
He was given till sunset to decide, and no answer coming on
Saturday morning (yesterday) a detachment of six or seven
steamers, aided by fifty marines from other ships, went in to
bombard the place. The first shot was fired by the Sampson
about seven o'clock a.m., and replied to immediately by the
Russian batteries. I was struck by the slow sedate way in which
the steamers fired shot and shell ; not one rattling broad-
side, but about four or five a minute, as the guns were brought
to bear. They took up a position about two thousand yards
from shore. At eleven o'clock the Vauban, French
steamer, hauled out of action, being disabled by red hot shot
from the batteries, of which five or six were now hard at work
peppering the French and English steamers. The most
annoying of these was a six-gun battery situated on the
Imperial shore, under Cardinal Richelieu's monument. This
fort was beautifully served, but about ten o'clock three or four
of its guns were silenced, probably dismounted, and at dinner
time the wood work took fire, and in four or five minutes the
fort blew up. I do hope the defenders escaped (as they might
easily have done) for they plied their long guns in the most
determined style and with great precision, no less than twelve
round shot going right through the Terrible, doing, however,

34 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 little damage,* only killing a poor fellow and wounding four
others, one of them belonging to our own ship. Upon this the
steamers crept close in, and the Sampson and Tiger steamed
very near in shore, and seemed as if they could not have enough
of it. What their casualties have been I do not know, but I
think very trifling. The Russians, it is supposed, suffered
severely. I have heard the loss estimated at i,ooa men, but
probably ten would be nearer the mark. Among other
episodes of Saturday's bombardment I must mention that we
had a large number of boats employed in discharging rockets
to fire the shipping in the harbour. When the fascine battery

• I have spoken of exploded, two rocket boats" dashed in and

fired a small sloop of war, and several other craft, which
exploded at intervals during the day and last night. The
Russians, who are the most resolute, energetic rascals, imme-
diately brought up three or four field guns with ammunition
tumbrils ; and while the rocket boats were engaged in destroy-
ing the shipping, they suddenly found themselves exposed to a '
brisk fire, which obliged them to beat a rapid retreat. As
they pulled away they gave their new friends a parting salute,
which succeeded in exploding one of the tumbrils, and must
have done much damage, for no more guns were fired by the
horse artillery. The damage done to ships must have been
very. great. Many of them lie prostrate in the harbour. Four
or five have blown up, and weliave seen them burning all to-
day. The most picturesque part of the proceedings was the
attack of the Arethusa upon a tormenting mortar battery
on the heights to the left of the town. This saucy
craft, and she is as saucy as she is beautiful, made
up her mind to do ^ something desperate, and being
ordered to cruise, coolly stood in for the shore and
undauntedly received the enemy's fire until she had come
within short range. She then ran up into the wind and
rounded to in the most graceful style, and delivered her broad-
side with the regularity of a S pithead review. I saw no fewer
than seven shells in succession burst over the battery, which
was in an unfinished trench. The artillerymen ran like lamp-
lighters. How many were left behind I do not know, but any
loss was soon made up, for, before the A rethusa had stood in
again to give them another dose, they had shot away the
Captain's gig. The frigate gave them two more broadsides

* According to the log of the Terrible the damage done was severe enough to
need the loan of eight of the Queen's carpenters on the zsth to aid in the work of
repair.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 35

in return, and then sailed off as calmly as if nothing had 1854
happened. It was certainly a beautiful sight, and delighted
Jack in the extreme. After all, a sailor loves the old
traditional mode of fighting, and rather distrusts a steamer
with her shell guns, and paddle-box boats, and dirty sails.*

The signal for recall was made about five o'clock and the
ships then came out of action, leaving the Highflyer behind to
keep things " snug." She reports to-day that the Russians are
making batteries all along the beach. Indeed we expect they
have received reinforcements, for when summoned to capitulate,
the Governor calmly said that he had not heard of the
Declaration of War, and begged us to give him till to-day
before we began to pull his nose. It seems to be the fashion
in Russian high places to lie. I do hope that the Admiral
will send us in to-morrow as well as the steamers ; we are only
just out of range, and there is plenty of water. In fact I think
we might throw in a shot even here, for yesterday the shot and
shell were cracking and buzzing all about us. It is true his in-
structions are to retain his line of battle ships until he meets with
the Sevastopol squadron, which number equally with ourselves,
and which we hourly expect to relieve Odessa : but it is no
use doing things by halves. The steamers fired away all
their shell yesterday, and it did not effect very much I suspect,
except setting fire to the ships and town, and killing a few
wretched artillerymen. As we have no troops we cannot hope
to take the town, which at present holds 40,000 men, therefore
our only course will be to cut it up so that it " will not hold
water," and thus be an €asy prey when our troops come. It
can only be done by a powerful force such as we have now.
All the civilians have left the town, and nobody remains but
the military. A sharp and thorough movement will, I
think, in the end mitigate the horrors of war. '

I shall send this by the first opportunity, and if my sheet is
filled will give you remaining news by the next mail — if I live
to do so. I hardly expect that it will be possible to begin
again to-morrow, the sea is so high. It is now nearly two
months since I left England, and I have heard from almost
everybody but you. How is this ?

Tuesday. — We are expecting hourly to go to the blockade
of Sevastopol, this bombardment of Odessa being but an

* In the light of after events there was historic romance in Captain Mend's
gallant feat in the Arethusa, for no British sailing frigate has since that occasion
attacked land defences.

36 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 "episode" in the history of the war. Our casualties in both
English and French ships amounted to one killed and ten
wounded. What the Russians lost no one will ever know.
This letter goes directly. Best love and remembrances to all
dear ones at home.

P.S. — John Adye comes to the East as Brigade-Major of
Artillery. This will ensure promotion of some sort for him.
I should like to have met him. We have reports of peace.

We find in the ship's log that the Arethusa was
noted "under all plain sail" bombarding a fort. The
incident has been commented upon thus :

" One of the prettiest manoeuvres I ever heard of in
" my time was done by the old Arethusa, a fifty-gun
" sailing frigate. She attacked a fort off Odessa, in
" the Black Sea. Sailing in she fired first one broad-
" side ; in tacking she fired her bow guns ; then she
" hove about, and fired her other broadside ; wore
" round and fired her stern guns. I do not know how
" many times this was repeated ; but it was a fine
" display of handling."*

The steamers and rocket boats were still firing the
town, when the Admiral, well knowing that effectually
damaging the port included the destruction of neutral
ships in the harbour, made the general recall.

In a letter from Admiral Dundas occurs the following
brief confirmation of this decision :

" A few days ago we gave Odessa a little of our shot
" and shell. It was well done by the steamers, five
" English and four French and six rocket boats. I
" spared the town, though in a few hours we could
" have knocked both it and the Mole, where the neutral
" ships were, into a mass of fire. The Fort, Imperial
" Mole and Russian shipping were all destroyed. I

♦From "A Middy's Recollections," page 28. — Rear-Adiniral the Honble.
Victor Alexander Mont^u.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 37

" did, in conjunction with my French colleagues what 1854
" we considered our duty after the flag of truce had
^' been fired on."*

Returning to their stations beside the Fleet, the
Queen cheers the dauntless Terrible, whose name was
hardly significant of the fact that the fighting comple-
ment of this paddle steamer was only twenty-one guns
albeit 68-pounders ; f nautical nomenclature in that
instance apparently also indicating the valour of the
ship's crew — an immeasurable quantity — as well as
numerical strength of horse power and munitions
of war. I

The presence of the troops at Malta not proving
sufficient intimidation to Russian diplomatists, the
Allies determined to push forward into Turkish terri-
tory. Vessel after vessel passed through the
Dardanelles to Gallipoli, where the British troops,
under Lieutenant-General Sir George Brown, and the
French, under General Canrobert, were soon established.
Gallipoli purveying arrangements having been extremely
scanty, the new comers foraged from each other as best

they could ; begged, borrowed or from anyone.

Our soldiers seem to have had little preparation made
for them, but, for the nonce, they were cheerful, and
did not take the discomforts too seriously, while official
sins were already bearing fruit in scarcity of everything
needed for a campaign.

The French here assumed the dictatorship, and

* History of the War (Cooke Stafford, page 262).

t In 1854 the heaviest gun carried afloat was the 68-pr. of 95 cwt.

X On the day of bombardment (Saturday, 22nd April) this frigate's log contains
entries at intervals. At 10.50 the following is recorded: "Let go S.B. in 5J
fms. and stream anchor sprung stbd. broadside to enemy and commenced firing
shot and shell. " At 1 1 :" Observed enemy 's shipping on fire. " At 1.45: "Let
go S.B. and stream anchor off the Mole .... opened fire on the forts with
red hot shot and shell."

On the 23rd, daylight : " Observed shipping in Odessa still burning. 7 : Down
T.G. yards stocked S.B. anchor with spare stock, former one being shot away,"
and other casualties.

It was the Terrible which took the news of the bombardment to Constantinople
on the 27th.

38 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 inaugurated a kind of military occupation. While our
commissariat was inadequate, both in numbers and
powers, they supplemented theirs, which was vastly
superior, by obtaining even luxuries, and locust-like
cleared the way whenever they were bent on procuring
provisions. Their experience as foragers in Africa,
their quick and intelligent methods of making them-
selves understood, and a certain characteristic quality of
devil-may-care selfishness, secured to this energetic
army the best of everything, and frequently all that was
at the moment to be bought or plundered. The
resources of Gallipoli becoming sorely taxed, for the
port as well as the town was crowded, the Himalaya
arriving there on the 13th of April with more than
1,700 men on board, was ordered by Sir George Brown
on to Scutari where the barrack of Selemnieh had been
placed at the disposal of the British. Here also was an
hospital which afterwards became the historic Golgotha
of suffering — Scutari Hospital, and later, when Miss
Nightingale reorganised its management, the welcome
refuge of the sick and wounded from the Crimea.

The barracks was now a War Office, divided into
departments, where bustle and flurry were the order of
the day. The troops, under Sir de Lacy Evans, were
encamped on the plain of Haidar Pacha between
Scutari and Kadi-koi.* Transports and troopships,
all of which were reported to have sailed with sealed
orders, arrived daily.

Novelty has its uses : though the soldiers find more
to drink than is good for them, they are hopeful and
almost gay ; the grim circumstance of war has not yet
actually overtaken them. The women of the Regiments
wash their clothes in the Bosphorus, and use the cypress
trees of the great cemetery when they want to dry them
in this consecrated ground where the pious Mussulman
loves to lay his dead, for Asia is to him sacred, and
Islam recognises the desire of her sons to be buried here.

* The place of a Kadi or Judge.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 39

The Osmanli regards the new comers with curious 1854
amazement, and is often provoked to mutter the
invocation : " Inshallah " !

During March and April Woolwich displays sleepless
energy : " Eight batteries of Horse and Field Artillery
are'despatched to the East in sailing ships. Siege train
companies and reserves of munitions of war are sent
off also,* but provisions for sick and wounded are nil,
and lack of every sort of preparation in the Commis-
sariat Department to keep the troops in health, make
disease certain, and suffering sure.

•"Recollections of a Military Life," page II. — General Sir John Adye,
G.C.B., R.A.

4°

CHAPTER V.

As the spring of 1854 was ending, it must have been
painfully obvious to the Tsar that he was embarked on
a gigantic hazard. Although for half a year Nature
was his stern and sure ally, the very vastness of his
empire now became its disadvantage, offering so many
and widely separated vulnerable points of attack. His
forces had to be skilfully disposed ; the forts of the
Baltic and Euxine strengthened ; defenceless towns
garrisoned ; and batteries erected wherever an lenemy
was likely to penetrate, or foreign ships to bring de-
struction. He displayed immense energy in every
direction, personally inspecting fortifications and super-
intending both naval and military preparations, while
retaining in his own hands the entire and absolute
control of the international policy of Russia.

The activity of all the Great Powers was now also
incessant ; but England did not yet realise the magni-
tude of the task which confronted her, for its colossal
nature was only dimly shadowed forth. Although it
appeared to those of our sailors and soldiers already in
proximity to thq enemy that much valuable time was
fruitlessly slipping away, in judging of the conspicuous
blundering that has become history, it must not be
forgotten that, so far as the Admiralty and War Office
were concerned, the arrears of a long period of some
condition akin to inertia had now to be hurriedly dealt
with by those who had no precedent, in their own
experience, to be their guide. It was strange indeed

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 41

that circumstances did not produce a Cabinet Minister 1854
strong enough to revolutionise a time-worn system.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
Off Sevastopol,

Sth May, 1854.

Thank you for your long, kind letter which yesterday
brought to me. I am glad to find that you have been enjoy-
ing yourself at Sandford. I know of no place I have yet seen
which is so fertile, so beautiful in natural scenery as our own
land ; each village there has points of neatness and even luxury
that even many of the first towns of the East seem to me to
lack. The famed Greece, as far as I could see it, is at best
but a barren land. It is true that ages of uncultivation (if
there be such a word) have destroyed its productive qualities.
I am speaking of things as they are. Tell Jenner he may
back the view from his drawing-room window for beauty
against all Arcadia, although I have never seen the latter, yet
I can guess its condition, the beauty only of the dead.

We have been here some fourteen days, hovering on and off
near this far-famed arsenal, in order that the Russians may
come out, if they will. Their ships are comfortably ensconced
in the dockyard creek protected by about 1,500 guns, so that
no earthly power from seaward can effect an entrance, unless
a heavy land force makes a simultaneous attack. The Crimea
is covered with snow, and Sevastopol must be a cold place,
lying, as it does, at the foot of a lofty hill exposed to the sea
breezes. We have not been nearer than three miles, so that I
can give you but a faint idea of it, but it seems entirely a
military town ; nothing but batteries, batteries, batteries.
There are about fourteen sail there, as far as we can dis-
cover.

I see by the papers that wiseacres at home complain of the
inertness of Admiral Dundas. It is all very well to talk so
with one's toes on the hob and a glass of hot whiskey toddy
not far off, but get opposite a battery with as many rows of
guns as a three decker, and all of their shot telling upon your
wood and but few of yours telling upon their stone, and then,
as the Turks say, " Marshallah, we shall see ! " There are, it
is said, besides these guns, 120,000 troops concentrated in
Sevastopol, and more still will be there, for the Russians are

42 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 retiring from Wallachia. We have no troops, and are not
likely to have any while those who should be here are " larking "
in Paris — ^aides de camp kissing their mammas, and generals
fitting themselves out at their leisure with appropriate toggery.
That won't take Sevastopol nor help 40,000 gentlemen of the
sword out of Odessa. The Russians are not so strong as they
have been represented. A determined effort now would win
the day, but I plainly see the opportunity will be lost. We
have been hugging ourselves too long with the idea that we
are the finest nation in the world, and it is taken for granted
that the prestige of the English name will (as heretofore) be
all-powerful. If you hear anyone give utterance to these
sentiments, do pull his nose, for my sake. The Russians
evidently anticipate the invasion of the Crimea ; they know
better what we ought to do than we ourselves. To-day a
squadron from this Fleet sails for Anapia, a fortified town on
the Circassian or Georgian coast, with instructions, it is said,
not to leave it until it is destroyed. Schamyl, a Circassian
chief, aids us with troops, and we have sent money, arms and
ammunition to him. He has offered to invade the Crimea
with his cavalry. This would be just the thing, but no
dependence is to be placed upon these fellows, and they have,
besides, no artillery. Probably when our force is reduced the
Russians will come out and try their strength. There seems
to be no news from the Baltic, except the probable loss of the
Amphion by running aground near Hamburg. What she
went there for I cannot see. I think it must be a mistake.

TO HIS MOTHER.

Off Sevastopol,

6th May, 1854.
My daily (or almost daily) entries for your benefit have
been somewhat interrupted of late by a slight attack of
bronchitis which is flying about the ship like an epidemic.
No less than forty-seven are on the sick list, chiefly from this
cause. It has only proved fatal in one solitary case. I am
now all but well, and shall, I hope, be able to execute my
Sunday office (which was obliged to be omitted last week). I
received two packets of letters from home yesterday which
appear to have been posted at separate times ; the last, it
seems, was posted 14th April and reached Stamboul the
2nd May and this place 5th May. I am glad to find all well,
and even that Dick is in life and likely to recover is much

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FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 43

more than I expected from the last accounts. Thank you 1854
especially for your kind expressions of love to me.

I am sorry you could not send the " Quarterly " ; it was
published the day after you wrote your first letter and could
have been obtained if previously ordered. But even in England
it is necessary to make arrangements in these little matters.
A box of books can be sent to me three times a month from
Southampton, and any shipping agent there (and it is easy to
find one) will carefully forward it to me at a small charge for
booking. " Blackwood " and " Eraser " are taken in by the
mess, so please do not purchase either of these. We have
Punch supplied regularly, as well as the daily papers, Naval
and Military gazettes, Galignanis, Courier de Constantinople,
&c., &c. What I want is not particularly " improving books,"
as they are called, but English literature of the standard kind. «
This is valuable in England, doubly so four thousand miles
away. Next to this the " Quarterly Review " is the best. I
had been feeding on the hope of seeing it for many weeks.

Please thank Aunts Henry and Helen for the present of
jam ; it will be very acceptable, although this is the land of
sweets. When at Constantinople we used to buy pounds at a
time of those " sweets " which in England are only to be found
at Trowbridge. Do you know the kind I mean ? In the
bazaars at Stamboul they are as thick as hops ; indeed all our
English lozenges and things of that kind evidently come
from the East. The schoolboy's " alicampane " is a Turkish
delight. We hope to return to Bulgaria in a day or two.
There in one neighbourhood two thousand years ago the people
were called Melitophage, or honey eaters. Whether the
natives or the English are the honey eaters now it is difficult
to determine. Honey is so cheap and good that we all eat it ;
comb, honey and bees all go down.

I suppose Buckley will be at Gallipoli by the end of the
month, if he has a fair wind. This place is twenty-five miles
or more from the Golden Horn. I should enjoy seeing him,
but he will not be able to get to Baldjeh or Kavarna. I should
like to be in England now instead of cruising about this Black
Sea. The Turks deserve great credit for the name they gave
it ; it is black enough, one day fine and hot, the next blowing
a gale. The water is of a dull leaden colour, not the beautiful
blue of the Mediterranean. I suppose the discomfort we live
in gives us a bad impression. All the bulk heads, i.e., the
cabin walls, so to speak, are knocked away and everything
but mere necessaries sent below. My palace on the quarter

44 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 deck is now occupied by a gun, and I myself have descended
once more to a cockpit cabin. I suppose it will not last long
and it is no use grumbling, but I do think the Government
ought not to make us pay income tax considering our
sufferings (?).

I see James East has gone to the Hague as junior lieutenant.
I hope he will be comfortable there. I hear from all his mess-
mates he is a very excellent fellow.

TO HIS SISTER.

H.M.S. Queen,

8th May, 1854.

Thank you for your kind note. When you next write, do
not trouble yourself to indict any " great news " as you call it.
We greedily devour all this from the papers, and probably
know more of what is going on in the world than you. But
personal news and family "chit-chat," from the birth of a baby
to the death of a puppy, is all interesting when read "off
Sevastopol."

We have been cruising within sight of Sevastopol for the
last ten days, and shall have to remain here for another ten, in
order that the Governor may have time to send to St. Peters-
burg to ask for instructions to attack us. I do sincerely hope
he will come out. A large portion of our fleet has gone to
storm Anapa, a strong fortress on the Circassian coast, and so
we are more equally matched than we were a week ago. I
never longed for an engagement till now, but news has
reached us that at Odessa the other day the Russians seized
all the merchant seamen who were in the town (having first
detained them there as prisoners) and forced them down to the
batteries at the point of the bayonet, so that many who fell on
that day were our own compatriots thus treacherously mur-
dered. We saw the artillerymen force persons to the guns, but
we thought it was some of their own soldiery, and little dreamt
of their being English. This is a deed worthy of the brutality
of the war of Mexico, in the times of Cortes or Pizarro. We
cannot do more than we did at Odessa, because all the standing
property there mainly belongs to English, Italians and Ger-
mans. Under other circumstances how gladly would we lay
the town in ashes, and teach them to respect at last the laws
of civilised warfare.

The weather is very strange in this Black Sea. On Saturday

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 45

the fog was so thick that we could not discern the length of 1854
the ship, and the whole fleet were obliged to anchor in eighty-
nine fathoms of water ! a thing never known before by the
"oldest inhabitant." Fancy letting out five hundred and
thirty-four feet of cable before the " mud hook " touched the
ground. The next day the sun shone out brightly, and the
fog rolled away to leeward in a thick yellow bank.

Constantinople is filled with troops. The Guards are much
admired by the Turkish ladies, who stop and talk to them, to
the indignation of all "true believers." Messirie's Hotel,
where I was, is filled with officers. Some of them behave
as soldier officers sometimes do, taking the barrack room
wherever they go. The English Ambassador's chaplain, a
mild, inoffensive man, used to live at Messirie's, that he might
have ready intercourse with the English, but he felt obliged to
shift his quarters. I wonder he does not report to the Horse-
guards.

TO HIS SISTER.

Black Sea,

loth May, 1854.

I had not intended to have written to you by this mail,
but it having been delayed for a day longer than we expected,
the opportunity must not be lost of sending even a short note
to thank you for yours.

I have enclosed a list of books, &c., I want. If you get
them for me, and have them packed in a box and forwarded to
some shipping agent at Southampton, they will reach me by
first steamer that comes out. If they are sent by sailing vessels
it takes six weeks or two months to arrive here, so that, owing
to damp, length of voyage, and rough treatment, almost every
one may be spoiled. To send parcels so will consequently be
" penny wise and pound foolish."

Your time seems to be very nicely cut out. It is indeed a
happiness to be thus fully occupied. We also on board have
our many occupations, but the circumstances of time and place
so affect our studies that nothing can be done regularly. It
would be of inestimable value to me if I knew French well and
mathematics, and I am making some progress in both, but the
impossibility of finding a quiet spot, or even light and air for
studying, makes my progress very slow indeed.

We are now, as you will learn from my other letter, off the

46 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 forts of Sevastopol, and are very likely to remain here, I fancy,
for some time to come. The Russians have fortified it during
the past year to an almost impregnable degree. It is as strong
as, or stronger than, Gibraltar.

The papers, I see, make a great outcry at the inertness of
Admiral Dundas. I wish one or other of the writers could
be out here as Commander-in-Chief Not only has the old
Admiral to command the Fleet, but he has to furnish it with
stores of provision and powder, and the steamers with coal ;
to please a French Admiral, and two Ambassadors at Con-
stantinople ; to place himself in such a position that he may
guard Varna and Constantinople and yet watch the Black
Sea ; and, at the same time, has to take good care not to risk
his line of battle-ships, for if these are lost, it will be im-
possible to get more from home, the public seeming to care so
little about us, and evidently fancying this great war to be a
mere flea-bite. However, we must do the best we can. The
ship is very sickly ; almost all of us have been ill. Some of
the men have died, and one of the officers passed away last
night. I shall be very glad when it is time to return to Besika
Bay and rest there snugly for a while.

The Emen, one of the Oriental steamers, arrived here yester-
day from Constantinople with provisions and stores for the
Fleet. She brought us a few letters also. Mind you send me
a full, true, and particular account of private news. How the
" cow with the crumpled horn " continues in health, what the
Horticultural Shows are- like, what new books there are, who
wrote them, and what is thought of them ; how all our friends
are in town and country, and so on.

We are now, of course, anxious to hear what has been done
by Admiral Napier in the Baltic : no news has yet reached us.
" Old Charley " is -greatly overmatched there, so that he should
fight the Russian fleet bit by bit, if he can catch them.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

May 20th, 1854.

I sent a letter to you about a week ago, but in all proba-
bility it will reach you at the same time as this. We have
some difficulty now in arranging to despatch our letters
through France direct from Constantinople, as one ship takes
letters and parcels straight on to Malta. However, they all go

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 47

somehow or another. Another time you wish to send to me, 1854
the P. and O. boats will bring out boxes of reasonable size for
nothing, but instead of directing " Glass with care. Keep this
side up," you must address them " Wearing apparel," or they
are bound to put them in the hold with cargo.

By the time this reaches you, you will have heard from the
papers the account of our disaster. We have been three weeks
cruising off Sevastopol, looking out for the Russians,-who, of
course, did not come out, and such an abominable state of
weather I never saw. We had fogs daily, and you cannot
imagine the difficulty there is to a large fleet in keeping its
proper station. Night and day was spent in ringing bells and
firing guns. Not a single accident happened to us in the
Fleet, but our three lookout ships, which were sent to blockade
Odessa, met with disaster in the fog. One night the Tiger
went ashore a few miles from Odessa. As far as I can make
out the particulars, they are shortly these. She had two con-
sorts, the Vesuvius and the Niger. When the morning of that
calamitous night broke, the Niger found herself under the
guns of Odessa, but as they were not manned she escaped scot
free, and steamed out post haste. Before she had gone far,
the sound of guns attracted her attention, and soon she per-
ceived the Tiger's masts over the fog, and the Vesuvius firing
shell at a battery on shore. She made the signal of recall to
the Tiger, but there was none to answer, and she was per-
ceived to be abandoned and a-fire. The Niger and Vesuvius
continued firing until five o'clock in the evening, and then
ceased, sending in a flag of truce for news. The Russians
informed them that the night before the look-out had heard the
blowing off of the Tiger's steam, and knew she must be on
shore. They also heard the word of command to throw over-
board the guns and lay out an anchor, in order that she might
be lightened and finally got off. They immediately ordered
up a heavy field battery and a flotilla of armed boats, which
arrived as soon as it was light enough to see the ill-fated ship.
They fired for an hour at her, and finding no resistance, took
possession of her. They discovered that several seamen were
killed, one lieutenant (whom they described as a tall, handsome
man, with dark whiskers, who can be no other, I think, than
the second lieutenant), and a midshipman ; and that the
captain's left leg had been taken off by a ball. The officers
and crew were made prisoners, but they had employed them-
selves, during their peppering, in burning all papers, signal
books, and matters of value, and, lastly, setting fire to their

48 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 ship, so that, although the Russians succeeded in destroying
her, they took no prize. The midshipman who was Icilled was
said to be the captain's nephew. Poor Captain Giffard, we
hear, is very ill. His anxiety of mind must be greater than
his bodily pain. He has lost (besides his leg) his ship, his
nephew, and some of his crew, no little property, and, when
he returns from captivity, if he survives, he must submit to a
court martial, which I fervently hope will not be in his dis-
favour. These are all the particulars I can glean. Of course
there are several circumstances which will not be cleared up
until we hear from some of them. It seems the Tiger had
outsailed the other two vessels, and had become separated
from them in the fog, but how the master could have let his
ship get on shore with the lead going, passes my comprehen-
sion. I feel the more interested in this matter as the Tiger
was the ship in which I came out from Constantinople to
Baldjeh. Captain Giffard and his officers were very kind
indeed to me, and I feel deeply for their fate. I trust the
Russians will treat them fairly. It is not known whether
communication will be allowed.

A copy of the following letter was forwarded
by Kelson Stothert to his father at a subsequent
date : —

" I send you," he then wrote, " an account of the loss of the
Tiger from an authentic source — the surgeon of the ship. His
narrative differs in some important particulars from that fur-
nished by the Russians."

Odessa,

iSth May, 1854.
Dear ,

H.M.S. Tiger struck the ground about 5.45 on the
morning of the 1 2th in a dense fog, going four knots. On the
weather clearing up we found ourselves within one hundred
and fifty yards of the beach under a steep cliff. Our anchor
was immediately laid out and the guns moved aft, shot, coals,
water, ballast, etc., got out, and every means taken to lighten
her. During three hours we were left unmolested. At the
end of that time a field battery of about eight guns opened a
most destructive fire upon us, and in about ten minutes the
ship was on fire in two places, and the captain and four others

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 49

struck down dangerously wounded. Some of our guns had 1854
been thrown overboard, and the only one we fired could not
be used with effect on account of the extreme elevation
required. Under these circumstances, all other resistance
being useless, the Russian flag was hoisted in token of sur-
render, and a boat was sent ashore to apprise the enemy of the
fact, on which the firing instantly ceased. Orders were giveft
for everyone to leave the ship immediately and take what
things they liked, but in the hurry very few availed themselves
of the permission, for, as the fog cleared up, the Vesuvius was
observed, and we were informed that if we did not come on
shore the firing would recommence. Before leaving the ship I
amputated the left leg of Captain Giffard, it being carried
away at the knee by shell. The right leg was also severely
wounded by a piece of shell, which cut it to the bone. Mr.
John Giffard lost both legs ; Travis, captain of niaintop, his
left leg. Nood, a boy, was riddled with pieces of shell.
These three are since dead. Tanner, ordinary seaman, was
wounded by a shell in various places on the thighs and left
hand (dangerously). Both he and Captain G. are doing well,
the latter suffering more from the wound on the right leg than
from the amputation. He endured much during the long ,
transit from the beach to the town, five or six miles. We are
now housed in the Lazaretto in comfortable rooms. Nothing
can exceed the kindness and attention we receive from every
one. We are well lodged, well fed, and every want attended to.
Indeed, we are far better off in the way of eating than you can be
in the Squadron after a month's cruise. I am writing this in a
great hurry, as I see the Furious and Vesuvius in the bay with
a flag of truce, and I hope to be able to send it. Lawless and
myself are both in attendance on Captain G., and are allowed
to see our men every day. There is very little sickness
amongst them. They are all cheerful and well content, and
are treated with every possible indulgence. Yesterday some
English vessels and crews were liberated by orders from St.
Petersburg. We want nothing, and the wife of General Osten
Sachen has insisted on supplying us from her own house with
any little delicacy or luxury for the captain's use. Personal
visits are made every day by the Governor and other officers,
who are all kindness. I send this outline for general infor-
mation.

In great haste.

Yours,

H. J. DORNVILLE.

SQ FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 End of letter of May 20th, 1854 : —

TO HIS MOTHER.

We are now on our road to Baldjik in Bulgaria for water.
This will occupy us a week, and I suppose in a fortnight we
shall be oflf Sevastopol once more. We could take the place if
we had forty thousand European troops and fifty or sixty
thousand Circassians and Turks. Without this complement
of men we can do nothing but blockade. I hope the weather
will alter, it is so very unhealthy. My cold has settled into a
chronic sore throat and cough, which are very troublesome,
and make me ill and feverish. My glorious cabin, as I told
you, is a thing of the past, and I am occupying a stinking
temporary one in the cockpit, having a great bilge-water-pipe
running through it, which in hot weather smells delightful.
Such are the fortunes of war. I believe a blockade is always
a troublesome affair, and all engaged must suffer more or less.
We hope to find letters waiting for us to-morrow, and shall
probably see something in Galignani of the Baltic Fleet. I
suppose " foolhardy Charley " will put his foot into it some
time or another. Of course, the papers will incite Pall Mall
against the Admiral of this fleet. They mu.st abuse somebody,
and so set upon us the Peace Party. I can only wish for a
bagful of editors within range of Sevastopol, or rather that
they had been on board the late lamented warship Tiger.

Admiral Sir Charles Napier's fine Baltic Fleet com-
prised such ships as the Duke of Wellington, The
Edinburgh, Blenheim, Hogue, Ajax, Leopard, Bulldog,
Termagant, Basilisk, Penelope, Arrogant, Hecla, Locust,
Porcupine, Gorgon, Otter, Albion, Cuckoo, Sphinx,
Gladiator, Stromboli, Vulture, Pigmy and Lightning,
as well as another squadron under Commodore Martin,
who during the summer hovered about Helsingfors and
Kronstadt.

The Allied Fleets in that sea were occupied princi-
pally in blockading. The bombardment of Kronstadt,
Sveaborg, Bomarsund, and other almost unapproach-
able citadels and forts, doubtless appeared simple
enough on paper, but Admiral Napier and Admiral

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 51

Parseval Deschenes were already beginning to suspect 1854
that without a land force the expedition would prove a
failure.

The Russian naval force in the Baltic, in two divi-
sions, stationed at Helsingfors and Kronstadt, consisted
of thirty line of battle ships, six frigates, all sailing
vessels, five sailing brigs and corvettes and ten paddle-
wheel steamers ; a gunboat flotilla and various
schooners, luggers, and transports.*

TO A FRIEND.

H.M.S. Queen,

26th May, 1854.
I was at Varna yesterday, and of course had a search after
the antiquities of the ancient Odessus. All I could find were
two articles, one an ancient bath and the other a marble slab
which once adorned a fountain at the head of the town, now
glorying in Arabesque ornaments and passages from the
Koran. A Greek priest gave me the date of the inscription.
As I know you are fond of these things I send it to you. The
slab was chipped and broken, so I have filled up the wanting

words with dotted letters, so The XIT at the

beginning may be Duxit or constituit, or anything you please.
I think DUXIT, as that would be the right sized word for its
position. I have copied each letter accurately, and I notice a
great confusion between the Greek and Latin characters. I
have not been quite lucky in the length of the lines, some of
them ought to have been drawn more to the right, as you will
see by the defaced portions. But although I took great care
with the aid of a dirty priest to copy it correctly, I must lay
the score of want of fac-simile at the door of the Turks, Greeks
and Bashi-Bazouks, who crowded round and hurried me over
my task. It is good enough for practical purposes, and I
myself was satisfied with having performed my devotion to
Clio, and then returned to the object I had in my journey, to
see troops, lines, guns and fortifications, rather than old inscrip-
tions. Can you let me know what Greek town might have
stood on the site of Baldjeh or Kavarna. There is much
masonry, but no inscriptions. No book nor map I have
informs me on this point. I will send you a copy of some

• W. Cooke Stafford's " History of the War," page 141.

52 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 inscriptions at Sinont (Sinope), if you still take an interest in
these things. I was very much pleased with Varna, and am
bent upon going to Shumla or Silistria if I can. I have not
time to stop another moment as I must send this away. My
very kind regards to you all.

Baldjik Kawo^— Ciuni, from its springs, afterwards Dionys-
opolis.

Odessus A Milesian colony.

Baba or 1 Tomi— the scene of Ovid's banishment.

Temesvar J

Near the wall \ Marianopolis, so called from the sister of
of Pravadi J Trajan.

> *Durostorum, the birthplace of Otius.
Sizeboli Apollonic demdr. Sozopolis.

Silistria or
Dristra

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
May 27th, 1854.
I received another letter from you on my return from Varna
yesterday, whither three or four of our officers and I had gone
to inspect the fortifications. I have not kept up my plan of
writing to you every day simply because it was impossible.
My journal has daily entries for three weeks something like
the following : —

Tuesday. — Fog. Saw the bowsprit from the quarter deck
about midday.

Wednesday. — Heard a gun to the north-west, supposed to
be the Admiral.

Thursday. — Three ships were visible for a few moments
about ten yards off. One of them supposed to be a steamer.
Fired a gun and was answered by the hail, " Who are you, old
fellow?" &c., &c.

Such is all I have had to enter of late. I hope you will not
send photographic paper without the machine, as it will be
quite useless, and I shall only give it away. You might as

• Query whether the Italian of Leg. I. Ital, or Leg. XI. Claudia

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. si

well send me a horse's tail without a horse. It is impossible 1854
to borrow these things as they are easily disarranged. I
cannot afford to buy one, so it must be lost.

We went down to Varna in the Bellerophon, having been
refused leave to ride, on account of the disturbed state of the
country. The officers there treated us with exceeding kind-
ness and gave us bed (J,.e., hammocks), breakfast and dinner.
We were two days at Varna. It has 10,000 Turkish and
Egyptian troops. The fortifications have been, and doubtless
are, strong, but they are in a very dilapidated state. The
guns are all, except a few brass ones, made at Woolwich. We
called upon the English consul, who was very civil, and then
we lionised the town and walked out to look at the forts under
the Balkan. The troops were very glad to see us, and we
were stared at as if ogres. The sentries have learned to pre-
sent arms and stand at " 'tention," European fashion, and
nothing could exceed the obsequiousness with which they
pestered us ; if we fell asleep the slap of a musket woke us up
and we found a soldier standing over us at the " present," and
so had to rise and return the salute. The bimbashees, or
colonels, came and shook hands with us, and then we had to
swallow such quantities of pipes and coffee that our digestions
will be disarranged for some days to come. The English and
French troops will soon be in Varna. The Light Division
leaves Stamboul for that place to-day. When we were there a
section of our sappers, and the Zouaves, and 500 French
engineers landed ; the latter are most magnificent men, pro-
vided with everything needed for active service. Our army, I
am told, is all at sixes and sevens, and will suffer terribly in
the ensuing campaign. How true it is that to be safe and at
peace one must always be prepared for war.

I have constant employment in writing letters, my friends
are so numerous and anxious to hear from me. I had a kind
note from Lord Valentia last night asking me to write to him,
which, of course, I have done. Best love.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

29th May, 1854.
I have another accidental opportunity of writing home,
although I sent only the day before yesterday. There is,
indeed, nothing to communicate, but as I know that you value
even a few lines, it is reason enough for me.

54 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 You will have seen in my other letters a "full, true and
particular account " of my visit to Varna last week. I enjoyed
the "escapade" exceedingly after our long confinement in
blockading Sevastopol. The most painful part of sea work is
(to me) the constraint and want of necessary exercise. As to
walking, it is out of the question, and I cannot enjoy the sport
of shooting as the other officers do, for I have no weapons nor
powder, and all personal property is too precious out here to
lend or borrow. There are plenty of hares, ducks and wild
birds of variegated and beautiful plumage in the woods. You
could not do me a greater kindness than sending me out a good
supply of Dartford powder in canisters, with a bag or two of
shot and caps. None of these things can we get here, except
very bad and at an extraordinary price. I wish you would
lend me your double barrel, but I would rather have a smaller
and lighter gun of double. I think you had one for your own
use. It is dreary work being obliged to wander by one's self
on the seashore, all others shooting. Everyone coming to the
Mediterranean brings guns, powder and shot as a matter of
course and necessity, and I ought to have done so.

The Agamemnon has just returned with Sir E. Lyons.
They have had a beautiful cruise on the coast of Circassia, and
have gained one or two bloodless victories. We have been
amusing ourselves greatly at " yarns " told about the bombard-
ment of Odessa ; the biggest are those that come from the
governor and the inhabitants. They must have been in a
famous fright.

We are likely to be here some time, and it is better than
blockading Sevastopol. I have just been looking at a plan of
the latter place. One hundred and ninety-two guns command
the entrance, besides many line-of-battle ships, so that it is an
impossibility to effect an entrance by water. What an army
can do is another question. The whole of the Light Division
of the army of the east will be at Varna to-day. Probably, if
the siege of Silistria is raised, the troops will move onward to
Sevastopol or Anapa, and, in conjunction with ourselves, "polish
off" those places. I suspect we shall remain here until some
operation of the kind has been concluded, which I hope will be
soon, for it must not be forgotten that by October we must be
again in port for winter quarters. If our troops are successful
in case they go beyond Shumla, or if they remain in garrison
there and the Turks proceed from Shumla to Silistria with
success, then I suppose we shall have to carry them with us to
the Crimea. It will be a fearful struggle, and I hope no pains.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 55

no resources, will be spared to render the affair complete. The 1854
stories of Peninsular battles will be nothing to this. Once
taken and destroyed, we may all go to the Baltic and work
away there. I suppose Buckley will be here soon with his
horse transport.

When you send the gun and powder, which I beg you will
do, do not forward by a sailing ship, but to Mr. Selby, tailor,
Portsmouth, and ask him to let me have them by one of the
P. & O. steamers. I bought a coat and paid him for it, so he
will recollect my name. The Banshee is just going away, and
I must despatch this hasty scrawl.

Meanwhile Omar Pasha, with wary skill, was mass-
ing his troops at Shumla, awaiting the oncoming of
Prince Paskievitch, whose invasion of Danubian terri-
tory was purposed to quell the provinces, and to strike
fear into the Councils of the Porte.

Sf'

CHAPTER VI.

On the 2nd of May, 1854, Raglan Somerset, Lord
Raglan, Commander-in-Chief of the British Forces in
the East, landed at Gallipoli from the Emu. He had
learnt the art of war under Wellington, and at the
battle of Waterloo a shot had deprived him of his right
arm. In 1854 he was a full General and Master-
General of the Ordnance.

It is doubtful whether that true and just sense of
proportion, time alone can give, has yet enabled pos-
terity to arrive at a dispassionate view of Lord Raglan
as a military leader. The contemporary clamour of
partisan and detractor is not yet completely silenced,
but history eventually discards exaggeration, and in her
thronged Walhalla, among the bravest he will doubtless
have an honoured place. Hampered by instructions
which laid upon him the responsibility of maintaining
a difficult alliance, he had to act in consort with the
French Commander-in-Chief, whom the irony of fate
destined to be Achille St. Arnaud, a type of soldier the
very antithesis of himself. In momentous circumstances
strange contrasts are often presented, aud these two
individualities, in temperament as well as in mental and
moral attributes, were so dissimilar that each to the
other must have appeared a human problem to which
be held no key

It cannot be considered that at any time they regarded
the operations of the war from the same point of view,
but, in consequence of Lord Raglan's studious avoid-

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 57

ance of argument, there was but little friction in the 1854
conferences, though the English Commander's reserved
and resolute attitude would have been a constant source
of irritation to a less self-satisfied mind than that of
General St. Arnaud.

Fettered by having to work in harmony with one
from whom he at times differed absolutely. Lord
Raglan's command was not supreme. The immediate
impulse, prompted by military genius in mordents of
critical import, which, if acted upon promptly, makes
the result so sure that all the apparently untoward
circumstances preceding decision seem but phases of a
vast plan leading to certain success, was never displayed
in his career in the East. The campaign was not with-
out opportunities for culminating events, and had he
been sole disposer of the forces, unhindered by Cabinet
instructions and consequent deterring influences, there
is reason to believe, with his swift and unerring discern-
ment, he would not have been lacking in that rapid
determination, and brilliant daring, in which the famous
leaders of all times have proved their skill. A military,
expedient may appear equivocal to those whose duty it
is to fulfil it, but the great General knows his inspira-
tion is right, and in his mind there is room neither for
divided councils nor un warlike hesitation. Unfortu-
nately Lord Raglan had frequently to encounter both
opposition and ill-timed delay. His fine qualities of
imperturbable calm and self-control endued him with a
singularly potent command over his own emotions, so
that sudden tidings appeared to find him unsurprised,
and news of disaster he could receive and comment
upon in that unprejudiced spirit which enabled him to
be silent as to adjudgement of blame, though ever quick
in resource to repair the weakness or mistake which
had caused reverse. Self-control and reserve well befit
leaders of men, and to these characteristics throughout
his unsullied life. Lord Raglan added stainless simplicity
of moral purpose, rare courtesy, and disregard of his

58 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 own individual interest. He shrank from every kind
of personal display, and the manifestation of that care-
less bonhommie which is frequently as significant of
a desire for approbation as of the wish to show
true fellowship. Notwithstanding, his most admiring
friends regretted he did not oftener unbend, as his
modest and dignified demeanour was apt to be
mistaken for pride, though those who knew him best*
were aware that inherent noble-mindedness made a
certain kind of popularity as distasteful to him as
the hasty and unjust comments upon some of his
actions, which it was out of the power of the writers
to understand.

A mere tyro in the study of human nature could
easily fill in the historic outline of the character of the
man with whom his instructions bade him act in con-
sort. Even Time, the magician, has not cast that
glamour over St. Arnaud's reputation which the un-
doubted possession of some brilliant qualities might
have evoked. By turns litterateur, poet, soldier and
adventurer ; vain, dashing, handsome t; delighting in
power and enterprise ; parading a gay courage during

* One of whom, Lord George Paget remarks, in his diary shortly after Balak-
lava : — " Lord Raglan rode through our camp this afternoon, which caused some
excitement among our fellows, rushing out to cheer him in their shirt sleeves.
But he did not say anything. How I longed for him to do so as I walked by his
horse's head. One little word, ' My boys, you have done well ! ' or somefliing
of the sort, would have cheered us all up, but then it would have entailed on him
more cheers, which would have been distasteful to him ; more's the pity, though
one cannot but admire such a nature." "The Light Cavalry Brigade in the
Crimea." Page 75. — General Lord George Paget, K.C.B.

t Opinions varied on this point : The French Ambassador gave a ball at Con-
stantinople soon after his Commander-in-Chief arrived. " General Baraguay
himself is a fine looking man," wrote an officer who was present, " but
General St. Amaud is a miserable-looking little fellow, with a small head and
very receding forehead and small twinkling eyes." — "The Crimean War from
First to Last." Page 26.— General Sir S. Lysons, G.C.B.

The following implies that a horse lent dignity, that was not native, to the
appearance of the French Commander-in-Chief: "Marshal St. Amaud often
visited our lines ; his cavalcade was striking. In front rode a dozen Arab
cavaliers. . . Then cante the Marshal, thin and very haggard, but a soldier
every inch, supported on either side by that lion in the fray, the gentle, long-haired
Canrobert, spectacles on nose ; by Bosquet, stout and stern ; and by fat,
good-humoured Prince Napoleon, outwardly a coarsely executed copy of his
incomparable uncle." — "Our Veterans." Page 40.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 59

intervals of absolute bodily weakness, which compels 1854
a kind of grim admiration ; restlessly energetic ; ava-
ricious and keen in business matters ; the victim of his
own vices ; hated of his fellow-countrymen, and ac-
credited with the deeds of a monster in Algeria : such
is the individual sent by Louis Napoleon to uphold the
military honour of France in the East.

At the time the supreme command devolves upon
him, his reputation will not bear daylight ; much that
is known of his character in the world has an evil
sound, and many of his actions are suspected of being
unfit for discussion.

Though France, both openly and secretly, has been
the ally of Turkey in past centuries, a claim now put
forth is certainly not justified by precedent.

Immediately St. Arnaud arrives, in order to gain
ascendancy, he suggests that he should take command
of the whole of the Ottoman army ; indeed, that a cer-
tain number of Turkish troops and artillery should be
incorporated with the French Divisions ; but our astute
Ambassador, Lord Stratford de Redcliffe, frustrates
these designs by reference to a treaty which provides
that the three armies should remain under distinct
commanders.

In May Omar Pasha meets the two Western chiefs
at Varna. He counsels them to move their armies up
to Bulgaria, where his own is menaced by the oncoming,
across the Danube, of the legions of the Tsar.

During the month Lord Raglan at Scutari reviews
the Army by divisions ; and General Airey has brigade
days ; but, though the officers say the soldiers know
their work, the Generals and Staff are deficient. One
diary contains the following, under date of May 19th,
1854 : " Old Sir George Brown has been doing his best
to bully everybody into his place : he is a fine old
soldier, but rather crabbed."* Sir George Brown's

*" Crimea from First to Last," page 23. — General Sir Daniel Lysons,
G.C.B.

6o FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 duties, however, are no sinecure, and are both diffi-
cult and diversified ; moreover, his brilliant reputation
does not rely on his peculiarities, which are, after all,
only a stern conservatism, bordering on the humorous.

On the 31st of May, His pale Majesty, Abdul
Medjid-Khan, the Sultan of Turkey, by the Grace
of Allah, Commander of the Faithful, honours the
troops of the Allies by reviewing them on Haidar
Pacha. Riding his steed wth that ease so typical of
his swift-going, carelessly graceful cavalry, he has to
endure much ceremony, saluting, firing and music — the
blare of trumpets and the roll of drums. Truly a bril-
liant pageant. No horoscope foretold the speedy, tragic
fate that awaited thousands of that glittering throng ;
nor the immeasurable suffering to which most of them
were hastening. " God is Great ! " The future is ever
a sealed book. They did not even dream of the terri-
ble experiences that were to be endured, else, contrasted
with such a hideous nightmare, what a childish farce
this fine military parade must have seemed.

It appears to have suggested itself to the Home
Government, as a strategic necessity, to cut off Russia's
communications with the Black Sea by the "occupa-
tion " of Perekof, and also of the entrance to the Sea of
Azof ; the army, however, was now conveyed to Bul-
garia, though the departure from the Bosphorus was
delayed by St. Arnaud, who endeavoured to dispose of
his troops differently ; the projected change was over-
ruled by Lord Raglan's determination.

TO HIS MOTHER. 'V

H.M.S. Queeu,

Baldjik Bay,
June 2nd, 1854.
We are expecting to leave this in a day or two for Sevas-
topol to have another turn at that abominable blockade. It is
all we can do, however, and the Russians (our steamers bring
us word) are " out." Of course, while we are here steamers

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 6i

are left cruising there. Others, too, are at the mouth of the 1854
Danube, and have to-day brought in six Dutchmen laden with
provisions for the Russian force. It is a great pity that we
allow any ships whatever to navigate this sea. We ought to
blockade the Euxine if we mean to do any good.

Admirals Dundas and Hamelin had just issued from
Baltschik, eighteen miles to the north-virest of Varna
(where the Fleets were stationed at the time), a notifica-
tion of the blockade of the ports and harbours of the
Euxine, but it is evident the writer had not yet heard
of this measure.

TO HIS MOTHER.

Whit Sunday. — The Banshee has just come in and brought
my letters, and returns to Stamboul to-night, so that I have
but a very few hours to spare to polish off my voluminous
correspondence.

As I am so much pressed for time, will you find the means
to acknowledge Jenner's letter which has reached me to-day,
together with Hayden's.

Yesterday we went to a picnic party on shore. We carried
a tent with us and the usual paraphernalia, and what is rather
unusual, a guard of fifteen men with loaded muskets and
bayonets. You will laugh, perhaps, at such precautionary
measures, but they are very necessary here ; there are so many
prowling parties of all descriptions roving about Bulgaria.
Several predatory persons came to pay us a visit, but we kept
a sharp lookout lest they should steal, and so they favoured
our prejudices with respect to the meaning of the word
" mine " and " thine." We pitched our tent in a low wood
close to a high road, and in the course of the day had many
visitors. Just after dinner a party of Cossacks of the Don
came to see us ; they are deserters from Russia, and now serve
in Turkey, and are a very fine cavalry corps. They were
commanded by a Hungarian, a gentleman. He and his
subaltern dined and smoked pipes with us. I was amused
with the Oriental way in which we were treated. It is the
custom here for everyone to keep open house. If you are
hungry or thirsty you walk indoors and sit down. That is all
you have to do. There is none of the " hope I don't intrude,"
and "pray don't mention it," and other polite humbugs of

62 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 Fatherland, but coffee and pipes— the real wants of life in hot
climates — are brought oiit at once, and you work away at
these as long as you like. You have done the host a favour,
not the host you, in such a case. Well, carrying out this
principle, every traveller who came within sight of our white
tent made his way to it, and was made welcome, the inferiors
sitting outside, and the grandees squatting upon an old hearth-
rug that we brought to serve as a company " divan." It is the
period of fasting, or Ramazan, with good Turks, but all that
came to us " pegged away " at our infidel viands with most
unholy avidity. We had a long walk into the country, and
were very civilly treated. The whole land — a land of oil, olive
and honey, and brooks of water — is now in its summer dress
and very charming.

Thank Caroline for all her letters. If she writes on two
thin sheets instead of crossing, it will be all the better. You
have made some grievous mistakes about postage. I have
IS. 3d. to pay on all letters, and I have paid i6s. for extra
postage from different quarters already. Please look to this.
The postage is sixpence on officers' letters to Malta, but that is
only two-thirds of the way here. However, alteration has
been made lately. Papers give us views of the taking of some
fort in the Baltic, and the loss of a gunboat. We have been
laughing at the Russian accounts of the Odessa and Tiger
businesses. I hope I shall meet John Adye.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

8th June, 1854.

I am going to write you a few lines, as I suppose a mail will
go in a day or two. The Britannia has reached me of the
date of May lOth, and a copy of the Weekly Dispatch. The
newsagent you employ had better be told that unless he takes
care to send out papers of the latest dates by the earliest
means, they will be quite valueless. However good the leader
may be, no one will be inclined to dive back into the State
news of a month ago, and so the advantage of a clever news-
paper is lost. We have had for some days London news of
the date of the 25 th May.

Yesterday the commander, captain of the marines and I had
an excursion into the interior. We left the ship about five in
the morning, and walked inland for three or four hours over
some most beautiful country. Whenever we came to a Turkish

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 63

guardhouse we fraternised with the soldiers, and rested our- 1854
selves under their protection. They are goodnatured,
courteous fellows, and the present of a handful of cigars or a
pinch of powder make them our friends. I could not help
once more contrasting my present life with that of a year
ago, when I was expecting the great scene at the installation
of the Chancellor at Oxford. Yesterday I was passing
through an unknown land, where every man's hand is against
his neighbour, or lounging on the floor of a Turkish guard-
house, regardless of fleas, bugs, " et hoc genus omne." One of
the soldiers sang us a song, and played with a quill on a rude
" pot-bellied " guitar, the ancient plectrum. I cannot say
much for the music. What effect it would have had on the
" used up " gentry, whom a hurricane from Costa's band
cannot stir, I know not. The warrior's war song of yesterday
was so simple, that it was merely a howl succeeded by a
gasp. This he sang over more than twenty times, always
using the same words and the same tune, till at last we
cried, " Peki, good," and declined to trespass any more
on his kindness.

The land we passed over is well watered and partially culti-
vated, and the principle of ownership is comprised in the
celebrated maxim, " First come, first served." A man cannot
say, " What's mine's my own " ; he can only assert, " What's
my own is only so, as long as I can keep it." I should not
mind " squatting " here at all, and would do so greatly in pre-
ference to emigrating to Australia. I much miss the books I
had hoped to receive last quarter. The captain of the Tiger
still lives, and his wife has gone in a man-of-war to Odessa.
We hope the Russians will receive her well.

June 9th,

Baldjik.

We have just heard from one of our officers who has
returned from Varna that our admirals on their recent visit
there were unsuccessful in meeting the Duke of Cambridge
and Lord Raglan. Neither of the latter is to be heard of, and
so the admirals have returned disappointed, and of course no
plans of operations have been determined on. I daresay we
shall go for a cruise to pass the time.

There are about seven thousand English troops at Varna,
and a few more French. Silistria was twice attacked by the
Russians on Saturday night, and the Governor killed by a

64 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 splinter of a shell. It is fully expected to fall before our
troops arrive, for the Russians are pressing the siege with great
vigour. No wonder the Turks accuse us of perfidy. Lord
Raglan has given out that he does not expect a " bona-fide "
war, and, I suppose, inoculated with these Aberdeenish
opinions, he will carry on operations accordingly. Be it so.
How can we expect aid to our own necessities when they
come if we treat our allies so carelessly ? By command of the
Queen and the Prince, Sir James Graham has sent to our
admiral, stating their commiseration for the unwarrantable
attacks the Press have made upon him, and their entire satis-
faction at his conduct of the war hitherto.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
nth June, 1854.

I have sent a long list of things I need (my only plan
of supplying my wants in this desolate region, where the dull
monotony of life becomes almost misery) — ^paint, pencils,
powder, paper, books and a gun, with shot and caps. I sup-
pose it is hopeless attempting photography, so I must try my
hand at painting.

We are still doing nothing, simply, I believe, because no
plan of operations is decided on. Sevastopol is safe without
troops. Silistria calls for them in vain, so we wait here
patiently. I heard to-day that when winter comes on almost
all the ships but ourselves will return to England. We had a
pleasant walk on shore this evening, that is, the captain,
commander and myself, and we flavoured our cigars with long
talks of home. It was eight o'clock with us ; you were just
under weigh for church, calling aloud in pious anger lest you
should all be too late.

Two days ago one of the marine officers and I rode a long
way into the country and made a call upon a courteous
country gentleman, who gave us a cordial reception. The
truth was we lost our way and met with few on the roads
besides Bashi-Bazouks, the scourge of the land, and these, as
we had started unarmed, were not the most pleasant people to
interrogate. We popped do^yn upon a Turkish town, wretched
and ruined, where I am sure no English clergyman had ever
been before. The children yelled at us, the dogs assaulted us,
and the natives stared. What do you think I did ? I drew a
man's tooth, and that with a pair of pincers ! A soldier asked

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 65

me if I was a hakim, to which, of course, I gave assent, feeling 1854.
myself quite as good a doctor as a Turkish M.D., and he sub-
mitted his tooth. I must confess that the resident doctor had
had a haul at it before we arrived ; but the patient was in
great pain, sitting with a spoon in his mouth, from which blood
was trickling. I made him wash his mouth, and then with a
good heave of my scientific arm his tooth was twisted out. I
am as proud as Punch of my achievement. The patient was
grateful, and this act procured us much civility.

We found an old, grey, Greek column, standing cold and
solitary in the midst of ruins. There was no inscription. I
could not learn the name of the town. We rode all day, and
our horses carried us wonderfully well. There is no " go " in
Turkish horses ; they will not gallop nor canter except for a
few yards, but they shuffle along as gaily as possible for hours
together, requiring no food except a nibble or two of grass.
When we wanted to smoke all we did was to roll off our
horses, cast them loose and take off their bits ; they fell to, and
when our pipes were out and we rose to our feet the animals
came cheerfully to be mounted again. I grew quite fond of
my horse, ragged and shoeless as he was. The Turkish
saddles are a great abomination. Most of the officers who
ride have brought out English saddles. The one I had the
other day was an old demipique, with stirrups like coal shovels
which are used as spurs by digging the ends of them against
the ribs of the horse, a hint he generally answers by stepping
out until the ends of his long toes (without shoes) catch in a
stone and down he comes. Then the benefit of the saddle
appears. You cannot fall off; your knees are pushed up to
your ears, and you are' brought up sharp by the crupper of the
saddle thrusting itself into your stomach, to the detriment of
immediate comfort and subsequent digestion. I never passed
such a day of gasping and laughing, laughing till out of breath
because I found myself so frequently " hit in the wind." We
nearly came to an adventure as we rode home in the evening.
We had met several parties of Bashi-Bazouks, and, about six
miles from Baldjik in a narrow pass, gazing behind us to take
our bearings, we found that these thieving rascals had congre-
gated, and were stealing down upon us about a mile in our
rear. We luckily struck the path just then and made good
use of our start, for we saw no more of them. I do not say
that they had returned upon our track for the purpose of
plunder, but it is their custom to take toll of all travellers.
The gloaming was coming on, the scene, for wildness, would

66 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 have suited Salvator Rosa, so we rode fast. That is all
the story. The Turks say that they would not have stopped
us, but would have shot at us. That is nothing, for they
are bad shots and constantly practise upon English, never
hitting anybody with their rattletrap guns. I want to push
my excursions still further inland, but no one as yet has made
up his mind to come. I do not like to go by myself as I do
not speak Turkish well enough to get on alone, and solitary
travellers are always robbed. Two of our officers had their
horses taken from them three days ago. Like my fellow
traveller and myself they were unarmed. Kindest love to all.

The Bashi-Bazouks, who might well have shared
the claim to be dubbed "the elixir of the rascality of
the earth," picturesque villains though they were, appear
to have inspired universal mistrust. Lord Raglan held
them in special abhorrence, but, in his case, experience
of irregular troops, as well as personal antipathy to
banditti, were strong factors in his disfavour. Neverthe-
less, the reformation of these fearless braves was seri-
ously planned. A certain zealous clergyman sailed from
England to the Crimea, carrying with his belongings
visiting cards, on which was printed :

Reverend ,

Chaplain to the Bashi-Bazouks.

That he did not know a word of their language was an
insignificant detail which, needless to add, was not
printed upon the cards.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

14th June, 1854.
I sent off a number of letters yesterday, and sit down again
to-day to jot down a few more lines, as it is probable that we
are off to the coast of Circassia in a short time, and then it
will be many weeks before we shall hear of you or you of us.
Much news arrived last night after our letters had gone. A
commissariat officer came from Varna and told us that the

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 67

troops were encamped about ten miles from that town, and 1854
that, in all probability, they would not advance further, as the
Russians had raised the seige of Silistria and fallen back upon
Jassy, perhaps only to enable them to concentrate their forces
elsewhere ; this will render it unnecessary for the allied forces to
advance to the relief of Silistria. As long as the French army
is in camp it is thought expedient by General St. Arnaud that
the Fleet should remain on this coast, to protect their rear. In
the meantime, the Russians are troublesome on the Circassian
coast, and have attempted to retake some of the forts. The
Terrible has been cruising off Sevastopol, and has several times
been within sight of Russian liners. The Retribution has
exchanged shots with the Russians, but where I cannot learn.
The Vesuvius, in chase of a prize, ran ashore at the St. George's
mouth of the Danube, and, after two days, got off only by
taking, everything out of her, even to coals and water, but
without much damage, and, as no Russian batteries were at
hand, she escaped the fate of the Tiger. At Odessa the
authorities are employing the English engineers to repair and
put together the machinery of that ship. It is said they
employ them "per force." Some of her guns, too, are fished
up and mounted upon the mole. We learn from an English-
man, brother of one of the officers of the flagship who was at
Odessa at the time of the siege, that the story you will have
read of the clandestine burial of the dead, is perfectly true ; he
himself saw seventy lying dead together. The gun that did so
much damage to us was worked by two students from the
military school, who, I suppose, earned promotion by their
gallantry. The others were badly served, and it is quite true
that many of the artillerymen had to be driven to the guns at
the point of the bayonet. The Russians intended to burn the
town if we had attempted to land.

Poor Captain Giffard of the Tiger is dead. His wife went
up to Odessa in the Vesuvius, but arrived too late. All was
over. Poor lady, she is only the first of many thousands.
The Russians evinced the greatest sympathy. Madame
d'Osten Sacken, the Governor's wife, went off to the Vesuvius
with two other ladies to accompany Mrs. Giffard on shore and
to afford her consolation. The next day she was carried to
her husband's grave. All his property was restored to her,
even to his boot hooks. Nothing, it is said, can exceed the
attention of the Governor and his wife.

I told you Captain Giffard's nephew was killed. Madame
d'Osten Sacken (who appears to be the " governor ") cut off a

68 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 lock of his hair, and sent it to his mother in a magnificent locket.
The officers and men are also exceedingly well treated. They
are most of .them on parole at Odessa. The first lieutenant
is gone to St. Petersburg by order, and the youngsters with
the naval instructor are sent to Moscow to college, a great
advantage indeed for them. The officers at Odessa have
everything done for them to lighten the burden of imprison-
ment, and have a box at the opera every night, free of expense.
Of course, if this clemency has not its effect upon the public
they will be treated more harshly. At present all goes
smoothly. After the surrender of the Tiger one of the officers
walked to the town smoking a cigar. A soldier of the guard
ordered him to put it out, which he, very properly, declining to
do, the soldier pushed him with the butt end of his musket.
Just at this moment an aide-de-camp rode up, and witnessing
the outrage, ordered the man to receive two hundred lashes, at
the same time giving an ample apology to the English officer.
This was a severe example, but a necessary one. Nations and
Governments do not war on individuals, and when a man is
rendered powerless by being made a prisoner, he has a right to
be treated with that consideration which is due to his social
rank.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

22nd June, 1854.
I have had (if I recollect rightly) but two letters from you
since I have been here. We are still racking our brains to dis-
cover what our next move will be ; nothing has transpired
which will give us reliance upon any anticipated move-
ment. News is again had from Silistria. The Russians had
made a feigned retreat, in order to draw the Turks from
that place, and have now returned in greater force than ever,
and have completely invested it. The Allied Forces still remain
at Varna, and now the 6th of July is spoken of as the earliest
possible period when the commissariat will have perfected their
arrangements sufficiently to enable the troops to advance.
We are all, to a man, anxious to move, since it is evident the
Russians become stronger and better prepared every day the
war is protracted. Never were delays more dangerous. Three
of our steamers have just returned from a cruise off Sevastopol.
The Russians sent out six steamers, three line-of-battle ships,
and three frigates, rather a disproportionate number. All

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 69

these ships are stated to have been of beautiful appearance to 1854
a seaman's eye. Our steamers took to their heels until they
had drawn the Russians about fifteen miles away from the
line-of-battle ships. Then they turned upon the enemy and
commenced a running fight. Not much harm was done, for
the Russians were six to their three, and all crowded with
troops. The Furious engaged the great Vladimir, English
built, and of remarkable speed and size. She steams one or
two knots faster than any we have here. Of course, for the
reasons I have given, the game was only at " long balls." The
Vladimir's shot passed over the masthead of the Furious,
whilst the latter's shot fell short of the Vladimir. We are all
surprised and hurt at finding that the Russian artillery is of
larger calibre than our own. The Terrible pitched one or two
shells into the Vladimir, which, falling among her crowded
decks, did such execution that the whole flotilla retired into
Sevastopol, with our steamers following — at a respectful dis-
tance. I say our steamers, but one of them was the Descartes,
a French heavy armed, steam frigate. She was no good, how-
ever ; hardly fired a shot ; and, when the Russians began to
pepper her, she hauled off, just as the Vauban did at Odessa.
I am inclined to think the French are funky fellows after all.
The officers engaged in this affair tell us that they believe the
Russians would come out, if an equal number of ships were
opposed to them.

We had a dinner party at a neighbouring Pasha's the other
day. He came on board, and was so civilly treated that he
gave us an invitation to visit him at his country house. We
accordingly went on shore at the hour appointed, and, with
true Turkish punctuality (two and a quarter hours after time),
he sent down saddle horses, and a coach and four, to convey
us to his Kiosk. There were eight of us, and, when we got
there, were shown into a kind of garden, with an octagonal
summer-house in the centre. This was encircled with a raised
divan and carpets, and, at our feet, a stone basin filled with
water. There we were regaled with coffee and pipes, and,
after waiting a tedious while for the arrival of his worship, we
attacked his cherry trees, of which there were, I should think,
five hundred in the garden.

At last he came; and this was the signal for more pipes and
coffee. Every emotion of joy or sorrow in Turkey is ex-
pressed by drinking coffee. If a man is glad he laughs, and
that entitles him to coffee. If he is sad he drinks coffee to
cheer him ; and we sat nearly all day drinking coffee. At last

7 o FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 came dinner in Oriental style, and, as this was a summer
party, on the ground, under a quince tree. A circular raised
tray was spread, upon which was placed a tureen of white
soup, eight pieces of bread and eight spoons of wood. We all
fell to at the bowl, for there were no plates, Mahomet not
having used any, and at this we continued for some time.
Then the soup was removed, and a lamb, roasted whole, was
placed upon the table, without mint sauce, salt, or condiments
of any kind, but stuffed with rice and chopped liver. The
only way to eat was to seize a prominent part of the animal
and strip off a " fill " of flesh. The spoons were useful to
those who disdained fingers for extracting the stuffing. I must
tell you that for my own part strict Ramazan was kept. It
was my first really Turkish meal, and I confess with shame
not having done justice to it. This course was followed by
dishes of sweetmeats, tarts and fruits.

There is a greasiness about a Turkish dinner which is very
disagreeable. It is true after every dish water is poured upon
the hands, but still a feeling of oil remains. Courtship, if ever
they do such things, must be unpleasant to a cleanrfingered
Turk, or to one who is at all fastidious. Fancy kissing a lady's
hand after she has stripped off the rib of a sheep ! There is
counterbalancing advantage, however. It would be an oppor-
tunity of great consequence, the possibility of pressing the
hand of an adored one during a mutual search for stuffing.

Looking back upon our day's excursion, I do not remember
if we did anything but eat, drink, and sleep on the sly when
the Pasha was not looking. We enjoyed the ride in the coach
(and four) immensely, as it was with extreme difficulty that
we could keep our seats over the rough roads.

The old gentleman is highly indignant at our inactivity.
The Turkish notion of war is a great fight and slaughter, and
then pipes and coffee. We could not persuade him into a con-
trary theory. He is a very fine, handsome old man, and when
the Ramazan is over, is coming to dine with us. I should
have told you that he touched nothing himself. During the
Ramazan, which lasts thirty days, the Turks fast seventeen
hours consecutively. After sundown they eat and drink till
morning light, so that, " by hook or by crook," they stow their
hold pretty well. Many of the men are very intemperate and
get shockingly drunk on Raki, a kind of rum.

P.S. 23rd. — We go to sea on Sunday. That day the Allied
troops march for Silistria.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 71

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
28th June, 1854.
Whether you wrote by the last mail I do not know, as our
letters are so irregular. They were detained at Constantinople
by the old admiral there, who sent on the steamer which
usually brings them, saying, " We did not want our letters, he
would send them to-morrow." This is the way these selfish
old officers annul all arrangements for our comfort made by
Government. We certainly had a few letters the day but one
after, but who knows whether the whole mail was sent ? We
are all very indignant that one stupid old fellow should keep
the letters of twelve thousand men waiting his private plea-
sure. The French postal arrangements are excellent. Not so
the Austrian. When at Stamboul I sent home all the money
I could spare in Bank of England notes. I have heard
nothing of them, and they have not reached their addresses.
I have set a person on the scent in London, but am greatly
afraid of the loss. They open all letters at the Austrian office,
somewhere between this and London. Many complaints have
been made, and all are now sent via Marseilles.

The Russians have retreated from Silistria, taking their guns
with them. Of course, they will now proceed against Austria,
and I hope she will get a good licking for robbing me !
There is a talk of giving us " batta," but it is too good to
be true. We ought to have it. There is no prize money, and
everything is so expensive that it is a " losing concern."
Kindest love to all.

CHAPTER VII.

i8S4 For six months of the year the Tsar of Russia has
nature for his unconquerable ally, when foreign vessels
are at the mercy of ice, frost, and frequent gales.

Notwithstanding the aid of Vice-Admiral Parseval
Deschenes and his French ships, Sir Charles Napier
found that he could not effect what was required of him
without the co-operation of a land force. The guns of
Sveaborg and Kronstadt kept the Allied Fleets at a safe
distance. * Ten thousand French troops were despatched
later, in English ships, to their support. The Emperor
Louis Napoleon might well designate this circumstance
in his parting address to the soldiers : "A unique fact
in history." The chief of the force was no less a per-
sonage than General Baraguay d'Hilliers, the whilom
diplomatist of Constantinople, who, by turns, had
been the adherent of a F"rench Monarchy and a French
Republic, and was now the servant of French Imperial-
ism. He was a chivalrous soldier, who bore a conscience
unburdened by memory of complicity with the coup
d'Hat of December, 1851.

The Allied Fleets could not complete their work in
the North in their first Expedition, the bombardment
and capture of Bomarsund being the principal event in
the Baltic in 1854, which did not at all satisfy the
Home Government, the victories not being considered

* It was related that after peace was proclaimed, Sir Charles Napier and a
Russian Governor were discussing the circumstances of the war, and when the
Citadel of Kronstadt was mentioned : " Why did you not come in ? " asked the
Muscovite. " Why did you not come out ? " Sir Charles quickly answered.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 73

adequate to the resources of the Admirals.* The 1854
British taxpayer naturally prefers his tacit compact with
the Government to be completed, and when he has set his
heart on a great naval victory he frets if he is baulked.
Knowing very little of the character of the fortifications
of Kronstadt, he considered himself aggrieved that it
was not bombarded, and the Governor taken prisoner,
but probably the " mob of gentlemen " who, according
to Pope, " write with ease " may, in the newspapers,
have fanned the flame of discontent that was beginning
to assert itself regarding the operations of the war.

The long and heroic defence of Silistria was con-
ducted by three brave and resolute young Englishmen ;
Captain Butler, Ceylon Rifles ; Lieutenant Nasmyth,
East India Company's service, and Lieutenant Ballard,
of the Indian Army. The Moslem soldier placed in
them the same absolute trust that he is supposed to
give to Allah. The enemy's repeated attempts to gain
possession of the famous Arab Tabia were heroically
resisted till the siege was raised on the 23rd of June.

Notwithstanding the Marshal's plea for delay that
his Army was not yet prepared to take the field, a
French force was the first to land at Varna. Hoisting
the Tricolor on a very high flagstaff must have
appeared a curious act to the 2,000 Egyptians already
encamped. Although sea-sickness is supposed to take
the grit out of the Frenchman, on approaching foreign
ground he usually recovers sufficiently to be ready to
jump ashore, and to express his sovereignty, and that
superb patriotism which has for symbol the waving of
his country's flag. Though the war cry may change
from "Vive le Roi '" to "Vive la Republique," ere a
brief campaign has reached its disastrous end ; though
a Tricolor, with a pike for flagstaff, may be substituted

* Under date September 8th, in General Sir Daniel (then Captain) Lysons'
•diary, we find this paragraph : " If we manage our work as easily as they have
done at Bomarsund in the Baltic, we shall be lucky," which appears to have been
the universal impression at the time. — "The Crimean War from First to Last,"
page 78.

74 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 for fleurs-de-lys on a field of azure, France is ever the
true Rappel for which her sons contend.

Our Allies, who did not wholly please us after all,
proceeded tq occupy Varna, as had been planned, and,
as had been expected, the best portions of the town.

Their alertness to take advantage of every oppor-
tunity was the envy of our battalions all through the
war. The arrangements for their comfort were vastly
superior to our own. In some doggerel verses by a
veteran who was all through the campaign, these lines
occurred : —

" The French are well provided for, their wants into are seen,
The soldier's friend is Buonaparte, but never Aberdeen ! "

which indicate the impression (prevalent at the time)
of the lack of care manifested by the Home Govern-
ment for the safety and comfort of all branches of the
services.

The English encamped at Aladyn.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Baldjik Bay,

1st July, 1854.
To our surprise we are still here, although every day brings;
us news of our being about to go to sea. Then we expected
the Duke of Cambridge on a visit, but he has not come as
yet.* It seems that the plot thickens; and Marshal St. Amaud
is apprehensive of an attack upon his rear if the Austrian
plays falsely, and so begs the Admiral to keep the sea near
him. The Turks are at this moment leaving the anchorage
here for the Bosphorus, but two of them are to be allowed to
go with us to show the Turkish flag. Admiral Dundas has a
strong objection to their being with us, they manage their
ships so indifferently ; the real truth is they are so utterly
careless of all precaution, and so totally oblivious of any orders
they receive, that it is impossible to manage them, and the

* July 1st, Saturday, p.m. — Arrived, the Retribution, having the RoyaP
Standard up, saluted ditto in company with Allied Fleets, with twenty-one guns.
— Log of the Queen.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 75

Naval Chiefs are apprehensive of another Sinope, which, as 1854
before, may be easily executed, and, although the Admirals of
course would be blamed, it would not be their fault.

The Fury took some Cossacks prisoners upon an island in
the Sulina mouth of the Danube. Three ships and a Cossack
officer were brought in, but taking the officer was a funny
affair. In the island was a morass of nearly a quadrangular
shape, and at each corner of this morass a party of men
landed. The first party attacked the Cossacks and shot
several men and horses. The rest ran away, and, in running,
fell in with the second party of English. This turned them
again and completed their rout. Captain Parker happened to
be on shore, and, fancying the affair over, had laid aside his
arms and was walking near the scene of combat. He passed
an old tub, and I suppose did not expect to find a tenant
there. Suddenly a huge head and beard protruded from the
cask, not a little startling the Englishman, who commenced
abusing the ugly intruder with all his might. Such was his
eloquence that the head and beard rose from the cask. The
Captain stormed more and more. The head and beard now
became a Cossack officer fully armed, who stepped forth upon
the sod. Nothing was left to the Englishman but to rave on
or fly. True to his calling and country he preferred the
former course, and, such was the force of our native language,
the Cossack yielded and gave up his sword.

We are getting very dull here and the weather is frightfully
hot. In my cabin it is jS" to 80° all night ; no fresh air to be
got. Last night I slept, or rather lay, on a heap of sails on
deck. When it became light I was obliged to go below, as of
course I have no right to make the deck my bedroom. You
may imagine that I am fit for nothing all day. We are
experiencing the disadvantage of the double income tax. No
prize money. Everything exorbitantly dear. Really the
country ought to do something for us.

P.S. 4th July, 1854. — Both Marshal St. Arnaud and the
Duke of Cambridge have been here for a few hours. The
latter has gone to Constantinople to discover what the
Austrians are doing. The Army at Varna are all anxiety for
a campaign in the Crimea. There is nothing they can do in
Bulgaria except hang the Greeks. These fellows are all
partisans of the Emperor of Russia, and make the country
very unsafe, shooting at an Englishman whenever they can.
One of them shot at Lord Raglan the other day. He was put

76 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 to death at once. Several have been caught and punished.
They were stretched on a board with a rope to each arm and
leg as tightly drawn as possible. Thus they were left all
night. Turkish punishments are no joke. When is George
coming out ? I have not yet seen Buckley, but perhaps shall
find him at Varna on Friday, as I hope to go there on that
day. It is pouring with rain, which will do much good, the
viheyards are looking very yellow for want of it. Kindest love.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

7th July, 1854.

I was very glad to receive your long and interesting letter.
What a Sad thing has been the loss of the Europa, so close to
the place where the unfortunate Amazon came to grief.

It does not appear, however, that any blame is to be attached
to the officers or men. When coming out here I could not get
over the unpleasant probability of fire, so careless, compared
with a man-of-war, is the watch kept on board a merchant
ship. In a man-of-war it is as safe at sea as being in one's
own house, but when men are few and watches sleepy, an
accident may at any moment occur. Have you heard any-
thing more of old Leonard ?

Can you find out for me whether, if we pay three stamps on
our letters here, they will have to be paid over again when
they arrive in England ? This is a vexed question amongst
us, and we have no means of settling it.

What a number of ships are being commissioned at home
just now. I hope they are getting manned properly, but the
want of bounty is much felt. The Tribune has just arrived,
having made several thousands of pounds in prize money. I
am becoming quite discontented : our pay is barely sufficient ;
things are at famine prices, and a large portion of our quarter's
pay has gone in the way of mess bills, which we think ought
to be paid up at once instead of waiting till Christmas. Signals
are made for letters, so I must close. Kindest love to all.
High haste.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

13th July, 1854-
We have some more sad news to send home. The son of
Admiral Parker, who died the other day, was a fine young

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 77

officer, only thirty years of age, already a post captain, and in 1854
command of the Firebrand. I gave you a laughable account
of his capturing a Cossack officer at a fort upon the Sulina
mouth of the Danube. At this fort he met his death on
Saturday last. He was out near Sulina with a party of
armed boats, merely for the purpose of making a reconnais-
sance, when, upon passing near a fort, a smart fire was opened
upon them by a concealed party of Greeks and Russians. He
immediately ran his own boat aground, and leaped ashore with
his crew, and was shot through the heart by a Greek as he was
in the act of reloading his rifle. He was immediately carried
back to his ship, and the other boats arriving, the fort was again
taken, and this time completely destroyed. The men did not
know of the loss of their chief till afterwards. So unexpected
was the attack that even the chaplain was in one of the boats,
and received a ball through the collar of his coat, but escaped
unhurt. The doctor returned to the ship with the body of the
captain, and the chaplain was left in charge of the wounded.

The officers (or at least some of them) of the Tiger have
returned. They speak very well of their treatment by the
Russian authorities. The subordinates tried to cheat them, as
all subordinates in Russia do, but they remonstrated with the
authorities, and obtained prompt redress. The damage done
by us at Odessa was very trifling, and the story about the
cornet fighting the battery was perfectly true. He was a
military student, and has gained an order and two steps by his
gallantry. It seems that, for once, the Russian reports were
far nearer the truth than our own. Odessa has gained great
credit from the Emperor by her conduct in this business. The
capture of the Tiger amply compensated them for the slight
loss we inflicted upon them at the bombardment. When the
news reached the Emperor about Captain Giflard, he sent
word that, as he had been present at Navarino, his sword was to
be returned to him, and that he was never to consider himself
as having been a prisoner of war. This piece of chivalry was
thrown away, as Captain Giflard was dead and buried before
the Emperor's message could be known.

The weather is still fiercely hot ; when the thermometer is
placed in the sun the mercury quickly rises to the top of the
tube. In our ward room, with the windows open and blinds,
it is over 80 degrees.

I shall be very glad to have the Spectator.

The music I sent for may be of any kind ; the bandmaster
will arrange it for his band. High haste.

78 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
19th July, 1854.

I have no news ; we are still at Baldjik, and likely to be. I
fear nothing will be done by the Allies till next year ; by that
time the screw Fleet will have done work in the Baltic, and
some will come here, and our army will be largely increased.
The French Marshal will perhaps by that time have made up
his mind to commence a campaign in the Crimea.

I wrote to John Adye* asking him to come to see me here.
He is unable to do so, and so I must find means to go and see
him at Varna. He says his hands are full of work. Buckley
also wants me to go and stay with him at Bujukdere.

It seems now quite certain that Austria has taken possession
of the Principalities. Russia, of course, must follow; the
accession of these two will place Turkey in a very enviable
position.

I am much obliged to you for the Oxford paper. I am no
longer a member of the University, having removed my name.
I yet want three terms of M.A. standing, although, counting
from matriculation, I am long past, as many of my juniors
have graduated M.A. I should be very glad if you could put
my name down again, as I shall be able to take my degree
next summer, when we shall be home.

I have put three postage stamps upon this letter as an
experiment. If it succeeds, and you are not called upon to
pay again, will you manage to send me out a pound's worth of
threepenny stamps ? Kindest love to all.

Omar Pasha bids the Allies avoid the proximity of
the lake at Devna, as it makes the district pestilential.
Before they drink, they must boil the water. Perhaps
they take the precaution, or more likely they forget !
The healthy British soldier scorns deliberate attention
to details ; besides, he rarely cares for advice, and, in
most foreign countries, generally buys his experience at
a high rate ; and Varna is not the only place where he
has had to barter for it with precious human life.

* Later, General Sir John Adye, G.C.B., R.A., Kelson Stothert's mother's
cousin.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 79

The commissariat in both Services leaves everything 1854
to be desired, for, though the Fleet is better off than
the Army, the overcrowding, and scanty supplies of fresh
food, makes the crews easy preys to disease. (As early
as the 9th June the Britannia had scurvy on board.)

H.M.S. Queen,

19th July.
My Dear Mother, —

I have only one moment to spare before our mail
closes.

We embark troops forthwith for Sevastopol, and are to land
at Cape Khersonesus — if we can.

Ever yours,

S. K. S.

Russian generalship having received effectual checks
both at Silistria and Rustchuk, the Allied Armies were
now growing more and more dissatisfied with the pre-
vailing inaction, and were restless to commence hos-
tilities, but, as the summer went on, the Commanders-
in-Chief found invincible enemies in their own camps
on whom they had not reckoned. Typhus and fever
appeared among the troops, and, soon after, cholera also.
Provision for the sick was almost nil, and the terrible
exigencies which were daily occurring, both at sea and
on land, were unspeakably grave. A careless belief in
our national luck appears to have presided at the
councils for preparation. Suffering and hardship were
the allies of disease and death, and the generals might
well be paralysed seeing the dull, patient faces of the
troops as the daily funerals, of men and officers alike,
passed by.

" Why will they not let us do something or go some-
where ? "* wrote one brave man who escaped disease all
through the campaign ; and his complaint was echoed
by thousands ; but Lord Raglan, who visited the men in

* "The Crimean War from First to Last," page 79. — General Sir Daniel
Lysons.

8o FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 hospital, unostentatiously shunning the parade of seem-
ing to be doing anything but his duty, knew the Army
was no better provided for the Invasion of the Crimea
than for its present experience. The soldier's garments
were not workmanlike, nor his gear convenient for the
business proposed. Equipped with bravery indeed,
but with nothing else in complete condition.

Kelson Stothert's letters speak bitterly of unpre-
paredness for any kind of advance, and of dependence
on prestige instead of powder. Nothing was ready
except British valour, which, alas, has too often had
to bear the consequences of British folly in running
headlong into disaster. Our Blue Books contain
some conspicuous instances of wisdom gathered too
late.

The Fleet was at anchor at Varna and Baldjik, and
the log of the Queen in July tells of the arrival and
departure of many French and English ships ; and now
we hear of a reconnaissance Expedition to the Crimean
coast which did not land. The little Fury, steered by
Sir Edmund Lyons, having on board several celebrated
men of both Services, reconnoitred the shores of Crim
Tartary, close enough to judge of the merits various
places offered for landing.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
22nd July, 1854.

We are now rapidly approaching the Crimea, the old
Scythian Chersonese, and are bent upon making a reconnais-
sance with Generals Canrobert and Sir George Brown on board.
We are short of our former squadron, eight line-of-battle ships
and a frigate, so that numerically we are less powerful than
the Russian squadron which, we presume, is sleeping peace-
fully in the harbour creek of Sevastopol.

The Trafalgar (120) and Diamond, corvette, are just ordered
back to Varna as they are such bad sailors ; the movements of
the Fleet are impeded by them. Since yesterday evening all
the steamers have taken the sailing ships in tow, and we are

Rear-Admiral sir EDMUND LYONS, Bart., G.C.B.,

AFTERWARDS VICE-ADMIRAL LORD LYONS.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 8i

hastening onward to the southern point of the Crimea, near 1854
which place, probably, a landing will be attempted. If the
Russians should come out it will be all the more in our favour,
although I am persuaded this is not our main object just now.
The Terrible has ourselves and the Rodney in tow, and we
clear for action to-night. Strange if, while you are quietly
worshipping at home to-morrow, we should be urging on the
work of death out here. These war alarms and the confusion
of sailing have put back my to-morrow's work.

26th. — We have been delayed for some days by foul winds
and bad weather, which prevented the steamers towing us, but
to-day we. came within sight of Sevastopol. The Fury,
steamer, with Admiral Lyons on board, also General Canrobert
and Sir George Brown, with some engineers, had the start of
the Fleet by several hours. The Russians sent out some
steamers after them, but they soon retired. All day we have
been cruising round and round within three miles of Sevastopol,
and, with our glasses, can see objects as clearly as you can into
Bath from the top of the hill. The town is not so large as I
expected, but is regularly built, with square, stone, villa-like
houses. I have marked down an arabesque summer-house in
a garden, where I shall take up my quarters when the place is
ours. The batteries are fearful to look at ! No drawing that
has been published in England has any similarity to the place
except the one in the Illustrated News ; all the rest are fancy
sketches. What these batteries may turn out to be it is, of
course, impossible to say, but they appear dreadful ! One of
them. Fort Constantine, carries two hundred guns, and looks
like a long barrack. All the others are very heavy, having
double rows of casemates with guns at the top en barbette.
Sevastopol is not defended at all on the land side, except with
a ditch, and a wall looped for musketry. Some of our steamers
were within half shot, but the Russians let us pass. I think
they are as afraid of us as we are of them. The Agamemnon
left to-night for Varna.

2'jth. — We stood off all night, and this morning returned
again to the Crimea, to take a look at the southern side. The
Russians do not know we are here, as we are now fifty to sixty
miles from Sevastopol. The weather is hot but exceedingly
iine, and it is pleasant cruising. This side of the Crimea is by
far the most picturesque. North of Sevastopol is flat, rich
land, but little raised above the level of the sea, affording

82 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 pasturage for large herds of cattle. Here, to the south, it is
higher, breaking into gigantic cliffs, the scarps of the cliffs
being fringed with Alpine larches. The downs are fairly-
wooded, and look like an English park, but we see few of the
homesteads in which John Bull delights. The monastery of
St. George is now close astern of my cabin window, with its
red roofs and blue and green cupolas peeping above the trees,
and its surrounding terraced gardens. It looks so calm and
beautiful, I could almost wish to be a monk myself — for a
week or ten days.

Saturday. — A sudden signal has been made of opportunity
for letters. We are out of sight of land. Cholera bad in the
camp at Varna. Love to all. High haste.

CHAPTER VIII.

The inkuman theory that by ridding the world of a 1854
portion of its surplus population, a decimating cam-
paign has beneficent results, might seem less unreason-
able if war claimed only those dregs of humanity who
cannot be reached either by Christian charity, or philan-
thropic device. Mismanagement, privation, and disease,
however, frequently exact numberless unforeseen sacri-
fices from an invading army ; while, with startling and
abundant proof, facts appear to suggest that the
chivalrous and the brave have no more special Provi-
dence to ward off evil and death, than that which
protects alike the worthless skulker and his vicious
mate.

The summer of 1854 was fateful indeed to the
Allies, but the diseases to which the troops succumbed
were not by any means wholly attributable to the
climate, except in so far as sanitary conditions and cir-
cumstances produced ailments that were intensified by
the heat. At the termination of the war, when there
was no lack of food, housing, or clothing, the returns
showed how inaccurate had been the prevalent belief
concerning the climate of the countries of the Black
Sea, which was actually little more detrimental to
health than a home station when sanitary measures
were not compulsory.

Food was scarce, water poisonous, medical aid totally
inadequate, hospital necessaries absolutely unprovided :
so mortality amongst the Allies was terrific. The

84 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 Frenchman takes the Boulevards wherever he goes,
and his incessant drinking of bad Bulgarian wine
proved calamitous indeed, especially as indulgence, at
Varna, was not regarded as a very grave offence. The
blessed influence of total abstinence was not the up-
lifting power in the Army which it has now become,
and even its timid sister, temperance, was practically
not in favour. The crusade against the "drink fiend"
had not yet greatly agitated army reformers, and of the
choice of " poisons," the thirsty naturally preferred the
most palatable ; besides, at Varna, it was little marvel
men wanted to drown their miseries and dread in any
nepenthe within reach. There was neither sanitation
nor cleanliness in the town, and the terrible scourge,
cholera, swept through the ranks unchecked during the
sickening summer heat. The survivors became dis-
spirited ; they had lost so many faithful comrades ;
battle could not avenge these deaths, and the promotion
that ensued was not of a sort the true soldier loves. It
was not sullenness that made the men silent in their
pathetic endurance ; there were strange elements in
their temper — resolution, patience, and the true courage
which enabled some to ward off the fear that made
others such ready victims to disease.

The death-roll increased daily. The mortality of the
French divisions in the Dobrudscha, where " a force
under Bosquet had been pushed forward from Varna as
far as Kustendji," * was appalling. The famous Arab
general, Yusuf, with his wild Bashi-Bazouks, Prince
Napoleon, and Epinasse, were all there ; a motley
throng truly. It was said that the enemy had thrown
dead bodies into the wells to poison the water, and
that our Ally left there ten thousand dead from cholera
alone.

In Fleet and Army, with French and English alike,
the desire to move on was pressing. The devastating

* " Coldstream Guards in the Crimea," page 39. — Lt.-Col. Ross of Bladens-
burg, C.B.

FJROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 85

pestilence was not the only reason that made men 1854
eager to leave a plague-stricken country, for it was
universally thought that the Allies were playing into
the hands of holy Russia by delay, and that this would
soon be proved by the condition of the enemy's fortifi-
cations. The 'chiefs, however, were well aware how
scant were the needful ^Dreparations for an invasion of
the Crimea. The foe had surer spies than we could
possibly procure, and though assault, and the speedy
capture of Sevastopol was, at first, thought quite within
the probabilities of the campaign, the necessary
munitions for such a course had not arrived ; and,
as time went on, and the enemy concentrated, other
means were considered more practicable, and had
to be essayed. As events proved, through our
own newspapers the Tsar had been kept informed ■
about the condition of the Western armies, as well
as of all that was known of the intentions of their
leaders.

Numerous transports were collecting in August ;
thousands of gabions, fascines, and sandbags were
being made, and the troops were employed practising
trench digging. Report, concerning marches and
plans, said one day what was contradicted on the
following. Nothing ' was corroborated, but all ranks,
though enfeebled and depressed, were impatient that
matters should be speedily brought to a climax ; and
while those who were not already sick were busying
themselves, the pestilence was busier still, and men
grew more and more expectant of being stricken.
How were they to elude the shadow of death save by
departure }

In Lord George Paget's diary, Varna, August 2nd,
1854, occurs the pathetic sentence: "The misery of
this place exceeds all belief " ; but the misery was not
confined to the capital of Bulgaria. The camp at
Aladyn (translated, faith in God) proved no less fatal,
and there cholera culminated the horrors of disease.

86 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 The survivors would have preferred the wholesale
bloodshed of war to the sickening inactivity which fos-
tered the pestilential maladies. The crews and troops,
who knew that upon them would fall the onus of fight-
ing, were also aware that the enemy was having time
to prepare for their bombardment.*

As the weeks dragged slowly on, and comrade after
comrade was stricken and buried, a mood of grim
despair seized hold of the soldiers ; they had entirely
lost the trim look of regiments ready for warfare. The
conviction grew, though their endurance was that of
Titans, that they were embarked on a meaningless
errand, which was almost certain to bring them to their
graves. They could not practise self-delusion in face
of facts. The facts were stern and squalid. The pale,
grim figure of death was constantly in their midst.
The men were all intelligent enough to know that
disease and privation were the needless horrors of a
European campaign. There was absolute lack of every
palliative for suffering, and of wholesome food there
was an increasing scarcity.

The following letters tell their own tale : —

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

9th August, 1854.

Buckley has arrived here, and a captain of marines, and I
have a good deal fraternised with him and this friend. He
is such a hospitable fellow that he would have us on board his
ship all day long if our pleasure or convenience would allow of
it. Such not being the case, however, we only avail ourselves

* Admiral Sir Leopold Heath's "Letters from the Black Sea " contain the
spirit of the period, and from the Niger, off the Danube, August l8th, 1854, he
wrote: " The much-talked-of expedition to the Crimea does not seem to be in
favour with the big-wigs, principally, I believe, from want of positive informa-
tion as to the Russian forces likely to be opposed to us, but partly from uncer-
tainty as to Austria's intentions. . . . One thing is quite clear, that'if they
go at all, no more time must be lost." Page 34.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 87

occasionally of his kindness, and he in return comes to us. 1854
Yesterday he gave my brother officer and me a trip to Varna
in his cutter, and we enjoyed ourselves exceedingly. The
weather was very hot, and the wind so light, that we were
eight hours going down. We left this ship at 4.30 in the
morning (not an early hour for a man-of-war, where everyone
is up at daybreak), and breakfasted about half way. We
called at several ships belonging to friends of Buckley's, and
found some of the men dead from cholera, which is raging
very badly at Varna. We landed about four o'clock, after
taking what Buckley calls " Tiffin " (which seems to be eating
ham and drinking champagne and water), and whilst he went
to the post office, my friend and I proceeded to make calls.
John Adye had gone on a cruise for the benefit of his health,
so I missed him. We saw several persons we knew, and many
we knew only by sight. It seems so strange to me to come
suddenly on officers I have met in Plymouth, Dublin, and else-
where, riding about here with just the same easy, jaunty air
as at home. They look very ill, and are, I hear, disgusted
with the expedition. The imputation of stock-jobbing which
attaches itself to Marshal St. Arnaud is very discouraging. It
is whispered that he is " working the war " to suit the funds in
which he gambles largely. I do not think the " fraternisation"
between France and England will last much longer. The
French are a chivalrous, brave people, but they are nationally
and individually selfish, and will, I believe, sell king and
country for " Honour " (or rather " Glory "), and personal
aggrandisement.

We hear Sir George Brown is returning to England ; he
does not get on well with Lord Raglan, who encourages
moustaches, and (ficcourages stocks and apoplectic seizures.
There are no signs of embarkation, though perhaps we may (a
part of us) go to Anapa, to send a " butcher's bill " home, that
the country may have some satisfaction for the money they
have laid out. In fact, the whole affair seems going to pieces,
and the Emperor will have his way yet, see if he does not.
The French have lost 5,000 and we several hundreds by
cholera, chiefly from reasons easy to be understood. The
French drink all day long, and eat sour fruit, and wallow in
dirt. You see dozens at a time in the streets, lying about
drunk. Two fellows fell down nearly upon me yesterday,
vomiting and senseless. A Turk or two picked up the fallen
men, with loud lamentations, generous fellows, but the troopers
round receded from them and left them to their fate. I now

88 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 fear these were cholera seizures. The place is very unhealthy
and filthy, though not so bad as it was. Most of the natives
are gone, and the shops, we used to see, closed. We have a
great deal of diarrhoea in the Fleet, but no cholera.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
At Sea, 14th August, 1854.

The steamer with the mails on board has been keeping
company with us for some time, but the sea is running too
high to allow of any communication. I hope to have letters
from home as none have reached me for so long. We are now
on a cruise for the sake of our health. The cholera has
attacked both Fleet and Army in a fearful way. The French
have lost 5,000 men at Varna, and the English several hun-
dreds when we heard last. The ship astern of us has lost
thirty men, and has ninety-one cases of cholera, and twenty-
eight of diarrhoea at the present moment. Other ships bury
many men daily. As yet, thank God, we have had no cases
of cholera, although perhaps there is not a man in the ship
quite free from illness ; I believe the London is the only other
so especially protected.* Our great anxiety now is for medical
men, we are so badly supplied. We have but two, a surgeon
and one assistant, although three should be our proper comple-
ment, even in peace. The poor assistant was called up five
times last night. Our second has been moved off to the
Trafalgar.

Varna has been partially destroyed by the fire of Greek
incendiaries. These rascals are " spies in the camp." They
are supposed to be our friends, but they aid and abet Russia
on all occasions. They helped to destroy the Tiger. They
shot Captain Parker at Sulinea. They were caught setting
fire to Varna, and many of them were cut down in the very
act.

Wednesday. — I have no news to tell you to-day, except that
the cholera is no better. We are all of us ailing, but none yet
seriously. Fainting fits are very common, but, so far, we have
escaped contagion.

Yesterday we were cruising all day off Cape Emein, the

* The Terrible and Fury also had immunity from cholera ; possibly this was
owing to their being anchored outside the range of the pestilential breeze that
struck the ships.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 89

extremity of the Lower Balkan. The land is low about here, 1854
and well wooded, looking in places like an English park. The
old sea margins are very visible in this soft, sand-like soil, and
one can clearly trace the secession of the ocean, age after age,
by the clear, sharp line of beach which it has left cut deep into
the sides of the mountain-like huge stairs. The whole of this
district is singular, geologically speaking ; almost all the
valleys are sunken valleys or, as I believe they are called,
valleys of depression, that is, rifts that have sunk down
bodily from the plain above, probably from earthquakes or
some such cause.

You will be sorry to hear that we no longer enjoy immunity
from the dreadful scourge which afflicts those around us. I
was called up at five o'clock this morning to bury a man who
had died in one or two hours' illness in the night. This was
the first intimation I had had of the fact, and you may be sure
it was no pleasant news. We are still in God's hands. For
myself, though a timid man, I never had fear of contagion in
fever or other disease, and I have no fear now, but hope to be of
service to the sick if God spares me. I have made a memo-
randum of my wishes in case of my death.

Jenner asks me to be godfather to his little one. Of course
I will. What an excellent plan the Convocation have started
for the reform of the Church. It is very strange, but only a
few days ago I sent home a scheme to the Bishop of Oxford,
advocating something of the sort with respect to a service book
for the Navy. Kindest love to all.

P.S. August i8th, 1854. — We are all better to-day, and the
Admiral, with five or six ships, has left us to go into harbour
and land our sick. A signal has just been made, " Opportunity
for Letters," so I must close my correspondence at once. This
morning we were off Varna, about ten miles distant. We
heard a salute fired, and can see the ships dressed with
Austrian colours. Something satisfactory has taken place.
I hope we shall hear to-morrow what it is.

Will you send me out, as soon as you can, by the Ocean
Parcels Delivery Company : —

One gutta-percha washhand basin.

One do. tumbler or cup,

One do. caraffe,

An india-rubber bath : some are made expressly for service ;

90 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 A large tin water can with filter. The filter is very
important, as our water is taken from a ditch. I have no
tumbler left, and my tub leaks so much that it is become
useless.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Baldjik Bay,
24th August, 1854.

Poor Buckley's death from cholera has shed a sad gloom
over all who knew him. In this ship, where he had frequently
visited me, his frank good nature and lively spirits had made
him a favourite with us all. He had dined with me on the
Thursday previous to his death, and was then complaining
slightly of a bilious attack ; the day following he remained in
bed, and the next day, Saturday, he was so well that he pre-
sided at a dinner party. On that Saturday morning we went
to sea at daybreak and I never saw him more ; he was buried
within forty-eight hours of the time we tripped anchor, and
had been a week in his grave when we returned. He was
taken ill at five o'clock on Sunday morning, and at one o'clock
the same day was a corpse. Five seamen and the steward
also fell victims to the disease. Buckley suffered very little.
At first he was ignorant of the state of his health and treated
it lightly, so lightly that, finding himself unable to read his
daily portion of Scripture, he requested a friend who was by
his side to do so for him, without making any reference at all
to his imminent death. Of the probability of this he was
altogether ignorant, soon relapsing into a torpid state in which
at length he died, all the efforts of those around him being
unavailing. His intimate friend, Captain Santry, of No. 88
transport, attended him five minutes after he was taken ill to
the very last, with the exception of a few minutes when the
misery of the scene brought on a fit of sickness which obliged
him to retire. He is buried under a cliff on the shore with
three others, and we have put up a board and inscription to his
memory. I have also taken precaution that this little cemetery
shall be cared for when we are gone from here. I am sending
poor Mrs. Buckley a rough sketch of the place which may be
acceptable to her. Santry and I have carefully surveyed and
packed up all his effects, and are now waiting Mrs. Buckley's
instructions.

Our cruise at sea was more disastrous to us than if we had

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 91

remained in harbour, since we fell in with the very pestilential 1854
wind that we wished to avoid, and from which we should have
been sheltered had we remained at anchor. Our loss has
been, perhaps, more severe than if we had fought a general
action. The Admiral's ship has lost one hundred and forty-
men, and twice that number are disabled by sickness, and the
fever which often follows the cholera. The Trafalgar has
had fifty deaths ; I do not know how many sick. The Albion
has lost fifteen per cent, of her crew, and the Rodney a larger
proportion still. The Valmy, French flagship, has, it is said,
lost two hundred and forty men. How true this is I do not know.
The transports which remained in harbour have only lost five
per cent., and the men-of-war guardships, I believe, none. The
French army which went to the Dobruscha lost exactly half
their number, so an officer told us. The othe^- troops have
been decimated by the plague. We ourselves, individually,
have had much sickness but few deaths. I buried a poor
fellow at sea yesterday morning from cholera, and I hope this
will be the last ; he had been ill fourteen days, and was only
taken with the cholera cramps a few hours before his death.
He sent for me, and I sat on the deck by his side, and nursed
him, and talked to him for some time, and I shall not in a
hurry forget the grateful clasp of his hand when he feebly
thanked me and told me he was happy and wished to be left
to die. He lived nearly two hours after. I have been sickly
for some time past, but to-day, I think, may say I am well.
My first complaint was lassitude and influenza, but Buckley's
sudden death, the necessity of keeping mind and body on the
stretch among the sick, the hot, pestilential air, the sights and
sounds that meet us — here the carcase of a cow ; in another
place the offal of several hundred sheep and oxen, killed for
the Fleet, floating all around us ; there a dead Turk or Greek
also floating in the water with arms extended just as the
wretches " hove " the dead body overboard — all these things
rather disordered me as they are all new, but a little care on
the part of the doctors, and keeping a good heart myself, have
drawn me, I think, out of any danger. Humanly speaking, I
am grateful to say you need be under no anxiety as regards
my health. Very few officers have died in the Fleet. One
post-captain and a few juniors are as yet the only persons ;
they have all done their duty very nobly. In the Britannia
forty men lay dead upon the decks one night. The alarm was
intense. The officers, one and all, even to the poor, old, lame
admiral, exerted themselves to the utmost, nursing the sick

92 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 and encouraging the whole. Some most extraordinary things
were done to give confidence. Among others, a friend of
my own nursed his servant until his death. When he had died
the officer took his pillow from under his head and calmly
went to sleep upon it. The doctors are giving in. Two or
three have applied to be invalided, and one has lost his senses
from excitement. Where are we to get more ? If it were not
for Sir James Graham and the Lords of the Admiralty, who
all believe in the " Divine right " of the executive branch, that
is, the branch of the navy containing the lieutenants, post-
captains, &c., that they think no one else is worthy of con-
sideration, care, or remuneration, we should be amply supplied
with medical men. Formerly surgeons were admitted into
the navy as youngsters, and served in the doctor's shop on
board, just as they would have done on shore. They then, of
course, lived in the midshipmen's berth and ranked accord-
ingly. Would you believe it, the Sea Lords insist upon
medical men now, men with diplomas and twenty-four or
twenty-five years of age, still living, as of yore, three years in
the midshipmen's berth ! Of course few can be found to
submit to such a galling absurdity.

Of war news we have little. The troops are embarked, and
the chiefs, it is said, have decided upon attempting to take
Sevastopol at once by escalade ; whether they will do so or
not remains to be seen. Hitherto the French Marshal St.
Arnaud has put his veto upon our proceedings ; he could not
attempt it with troops and ships in fine condition, now I dare
say he will be quite ready to sacrifice thousands of lives before
thew alls of Sevastopol. Whispers of treachery, and the power
of Russian gold, are getting louder and louder. If " every man
has his price," I should think the value of the Marshal St.
Arnaud might be easily gauged, and probably even now has
been discovered. I hear rumours of the capture of Bomarsund.
Probably only a Stock Exchange canard. Do send me some
new books for winter use. Kindest love to all.

I have heard nothing of the colour-box — moist colours I
want, not oil colours of which I know nothing. Hard colours
would crack out here and become powder. " Moist colour "
is the technical term for a particular kind of water colour.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 93

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Baldjik,

28th August, 1854.

No new cases of cholera of late, but deaths daily occur from
old cases or the subsequent fever. The casualties amount to
between four hundred and five hundred men, and by some
fatality the best seamen have fallen victims. Supernumeraries
have been sent out here with great despatch ; the flagship is
already nearly remanned, and, with the Tiger's crew, who are
daily expected from England, she will be complete. Our
great want is of medical men. We are at last quite indignant
at the statement of Sir J. Graham that no assistant surgeons
are required. We have hitherto laughed at the falsehoods
with which this precious ministry have deluded the House and
the country, but this touches us too closely.

The transports are returning from Varna packed with men,
chiefly artillery. We ourselves do not expect to carry troops.
On Saturday we go to sea, and great apprehensions are felt
that another exposure to the plague-bearing winds of the
Euxine will bring back a return of the cholera. Where our
destination may be it is impossible to tell. Some say Odessa,
and that we are to make it our winter quarters ; but in that
case how shall we be able to obtain supplies, for the sea will
be a field of ice ? Others think Anapa, but I was told by an
engineer, who had just come from the court of Circassia, that
Schamyl, the mountain chief, " priest, prophet and general of
his people," had earnestly begged us to leave Anapa alone,
for it necessitated the keeping up of a constant supply of
Russian troops in that fortress, and it relieved his mind to
know where they were. Prince Mentschikoff expects us at
Sevastopol, and I think he is right. He told a prisoner he
has just released, that he was accurately informed of all our
movements and intentions by an organised system of spies.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Baldjik Bay,

29th Aug., 1854.
You will by this time, of course, have heard of the unex-
pected death of poor Buckley. His wife will suffer greatly, I

94 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 fear. I know Buckley was deeply attached to her. He
could not have been a very strong man, for he sank so
suddenly ; smells and other unpleasantnesses, of which we
have become careless, used to distress him very much. He
never went ashore with me and passed the slaughter-house but
the heat and stench made him sick. I think that the life out
here was too much for him, as he had been always used to the
luxury of the cuddy of a merchant ship. I find all feel the
hardships of this expedition. The easy life on board mail
steamers forms an exceeding contrast to that on a man-of-war,
with its oftentimes bare fare, and ceaseless anxiety, both in
harbour and at sea. There champagne is drunk every day ;
we have it once a year ^^■hen we cannot help it. They carry
English sheep and a well-stocked poultry coop, and " growl "
at their stewards if they have not five or six dishes on the
table. We think a Turkish bullock, brought on board fresh
from the plough tail, somewhat of a prize, and do not disdain
to take off his iron shoes, and eat him afterwards.

When in harbour the master of a merchant ship never goes
near his charge unless to seal some contract. No wonder,
then, they do not like being tied to their ships and forced to
submit to something like discipline.

The transports are flocking in, filled with artillery. We
find that there are 180,000 men in the Crimea, a diflScult
morsel to swallow. No doubt that with the cholera, fever and
battle, few will return home of all those who left England a
few months ago. Everyone who does live to go back will be
what Jack calls " a curio."

The heat has now somewhat abated, and all the sick are
getting better. It is not too hot on most days to walk on
shore, but the whole country is looking arid and burnt up.
The bushes teem with life — lizards, snakes, and beetles of all
descriptions. I saw one fellow yesterday nearly five inches long,
with large legs and a rattle on the back of his head, which he
sounded when touched. Two nights ago the ward room was
filled with locusts blown off the land. Fancy two dozen grass-
hoppers, nearly as long as a teaspoon, buzzing about the lights.

From all I can hear it seems very probable that we shall
winter in the Black Sea. I want to trouble you with a large
order, if you can find any grocer capable of executing it. We
have no butter left, and are reduced to eating dry bread, or
buying jam at 2s. 6d. a pot, so will you see at what price you
can buy twelve dozen best Scotch marmalade, one dozen pots
potted bloaters, one dozen pots potted anchovies. These will

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 95

last for six months if fresh, well packed, and sent out in good
condition. The marmalade should be of the best kind, not a
compound of orange peel, pumpkin and turnip, and in a large
quantity ought to be purchased for about 7d. a pot.

I shall be very glad to have any amount of letters or
papers when off the Crimea. I should very much like the
Spectator.

I am quite well now, with the exception of another fit of
influenza. My " liver complaint " has yielded to calomel, and
as the weather cools I may expect to bid it good-bye, the
doctor says.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Baldjik, 4th September, 1854.
The signal has just been made, " Prepare for sea," so I am
hurriedly scribbling to finish my letters.

% % % 'i^ %

We have had a fearful visitation of cholera, and I have had
much to do. This has passed away, but now the usual sickly
season is coming on, and we may expect many weakly ones
to sink. I feel very grateful that, more or less, my own health
has been exceedingly good. A few influenzas, and a touch of
liver complaint, have been all the harm the climate has done
me. I live moderately, and take what exercise I can get.

There is little excitement going on ; it is only just begin-
ning ; we are all dispirited by ennui.

I had a walk yesterday some way into the country, and paid
a last visit to the gardens. The grapes are very fine. I
measured one bunch and found it fifteen inches long, and I
suppose there are many thousands like it. The vines are
trained on trellises over all the running streams, forming a
covered way sometimes of two hundred yards. The inter-
vening open spaces are filled up with dwarf vines, growing like
our gooseberry bushes and to about the same height. These
are the delicious sultana grapes, which make the small raisins
we see in England. The fruit is not thinned out (for that
would be impossible), and only roughly pruned. A kind of
sweetmeat is made from these grapes. What it is I cannot
say. They give you a word which means " honey," but what
more I could never make out.

I hope you will enjoy your visit to Jenner, and bring down
his birds. I wrote to him not long ago.

96 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 I have a scheme in my head to go to Jerusalem in the
winter. A steamer leaves Stamboul monthly for Smyrna and
Jaffa, and I may never have such another opportunity. Do
you think you can give me the needful for this purpose ? An
order from a banker to Mr. Hanson, the banker at Stamboul,
will procure me the money. If you cannot, I must abandon
my pilgrimage, for I have not enough of my own, I have
to send home what I can. You shall hear by the next mail
where we are bound. I do not think we shall dare to attack
Sevastopol. They have 180,000 men; we 85,000 at the
highest computation, 65,000 of French and English, and some
Turks. How many I cannot learn.

*****

We have at this moment let go the anchor in Kavarna Bay,
having returned to this place to water. We find the Turkish
Fleet here ; they are a queer set of craft. There are five ships,
and three admirals among them. Nothing was done before
Sevastopol, and I suppose we shall return there in a day or
two. I am still much troubled with my throat — perhaps a
day's sunshine will remove it.

Baldjik, Monday. — We are all safely anchored here. The
country is very green, and the vineyards beautiful. Such a
change since we left, four weeks ago. I am going for a
walk, the first time for a month. There is nothing to tell you.
Love to all.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Sept. 4th, 1854.

Your letter, having arrived during the night, was brought
to me this morning.

I wish I were at home to offer my congratulations to my
dear old grandmamma. For an Englishwoman she has far
outlived the ordinary length of life, but here in the East
a man of ninety is to be seen at every corner, smoking as
calmly as when he began at three years of age, the usual time
when children first inhale the fumes of the delicious Latakia.
I have many times seen a curious looking object, with big
breeches, yellow shoes, jacket and turban, quite an old-
fashioned Turk in appearance, smoking a paper cigarette with
a calm thoughtful face, and have been startled, almost alarmed
for a moment, when upon addressing him, this old man-of-a-

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 97

child, has dropped his cigarette, extended his mouth, yelled 1854
loudly and fled away, like an English baby had a Turk offered
to kiss him. I have felt as much astonishment at this frequent
infantile exhibition, as Sterne did when he heard the little boys
in Paris speaking French.

Where we are going I cannot explain. Common report says
to Sevastopol, but I do not think we shall dare to land there,
any more than Napoleon ventured to invade the coast of
England.

We have a great gathering here, between three and four
hundred sail, and several hundred must be at Varna, as that
harbour is still quite full. The Turkish Fleet has joined us
here. I see the Times writes angrily at our allowing the Turks
to die of starvation and scurvy, and pronounces a malediction
upon our Admiral for sending them away. The reason they
were sent away was that they were dying of starvation and
scurvy. Surely it is not our place to find them in food and
money as well as to fight their battles. Their Government
neither feeds nor pays them ; why should we ? And, as we did
not want to see them die, we sent them away. The fact is,
our commanders have very wisely resolved to avoid commit-
ting the old fault of paying bad troops and getting work
indifferently done, as was the case with the Portuguese in the
last war. What we have to do we prefer doing in our own
way. The Turks are excellent fellows behind walls, but they
are a plundering, blundering, obstinate people, and as careless
of human life, and of the means of preserving it, as they
possibly can be. We could never be assured that the scurvy-
stricken patients were not smoking in the powder magazine,
as the easiest way of shortening their sufferings.

When Aunt Henry returns from Germany, beg her to come
out to Constantinople, via Trieste, or Vienna. It can be done
in ten days at a small cost. Lodgings are easily found now
in Stamboul, and it is a capital place to winter in. Give my
kindest love to all our friends on shore. Bath people are the
nearest I have, geographically speaking.

I long, long for home.

CHAPTER IX.

1854 The process of reasoning is not even yet known which
led the British Government to the conviction, that only
by the Invasion of the Crimea, the destruction of
Sevastopol and of the Russian Fleet, "might a safe
and honourable peace" be made. The discussion
which it involved proved, however, a welcome diver-
sion to the Allies, although their experience in Bulgaria
had made them bitterly aware of the fact that every
" delay gives opportunity for disaster." *

The conjectures regarding the defences of the foe
were varied and uncertain, but the Tsar had already had
time to make vast plans and preparations, and that he
had appreciated his freedom for so doing, was manifested
when the almost impregnable fortresses of Sevastopol
withstood months of siege, as well as every conceivable
naval device, and military strategy, for their downfall.
Although one important result of the unprecedented
and frank war correspondence from the camps was dis-
counted by the writers, it proved in many ways invalu-
able ; yet it was unfortunate that the enemy could not
but learn from it even more accurate information than his
spies were able to gather. The condition of the Allied
Troops, and the future intentions of their commanders,
were facts which, under the circumstances, could not be
kept from the Russian Government. Nevertheless,
the widespread horror in Britain, produced by the
newspaper descriptions of the calamities at Varna,
was instrumental in causing a powerful reaction from

* Napoleon.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 99

pursuance in passive and unjustifiable mismanagement. 1854
It is true that a war at any time during the long peace-
ful interval must have shown the weakness of the sys-
tem, and probably rendered it effete, but it is difficult
to believe that men who knew by personal experience
the grave difficulties in the Peninsula, had meanwhile
been in office, and had so rarely protested against
existing evils. Almost every family in Britain had
either one of its members, or a friend, now in the
East ; and indignation as well as sorrow at the ravages
made by disease and death, inspired a popular determi-
nation that a new regime, based on a more energetic
policy, should be immediately organised.

It is still a question whether the generous national
impulses, which eventually prompted almost universal
acquiescence in voting for anything and everything to
lessen the woes of those who were upholding the honour
of England, would have been roused by any other means
than the columns of the daily journals. But it is indis-
putable that in the glowing and vivid accounts of reali-
ties, free use was made of direct appeal to the hearts of
the British people, and was not made in vain.*

It has been frequently asserted by military critics
that the Invasion of the Crimea was a crude project.
With the Russian Fleet confined to Sevastopol waters,
the Allies were practically in possession of the Black
Sea, and there were, of course, various ports and points
of attack from which to choose. Warning might have
been given to neutral vessels, and Odessa captured, but
to land the armies there would have offered an oppor-
tunity to the enemy to pour down his legions on a posi-
tion much more accessible to him than the Crimea.
Quickly enough the invaders would have been over-
matched, and, probably, ignominiously driven back to
the sea.

4 (( /

' Great is journalism. Is not every able editor a ruler of the world, being
a persuader of it ? Though self-elected, yet sanctioned, by the sale of his num-
bers."—"The French Revolution," page 35, Part II.— Carlyle.

loo FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

i8S4 It is a curious fact that whilst the Fleets were com-
paratively idle during the early summer, no well-planned
attempt was made at Yenikali to cut off the sea road
from the corn lands of the Don, whose ship loads of
grain were sent to their destination through the Sea of
Azov ; nor was the Isthmus of Perekop barred, and it
became of vital importance when the army of Bess-
arabia was brought down to the Crimea. These were
the only entrances to the Black Sea available from the
North. To have blockaded the belligerent ports would
have rendered Russia powerless for evil against the
Ottoman Empire only so long as the blockades lasted ;
and the most that had hitherto been effected was to
have made Russian vessels run the gauntlet of English
cruisers. Had the Allies sought the co-operation of
the hill tribes, and independent enemies of the Tsar in
Asia, it is probable that the Muscovite's presence to-
day within measurable distance of our Indian frontier,
would have been averted.

It has been frequently said that our Admirals and
Generals were too old for unexpected daring and bril-
liant exploit, but when the time of their trial came,
they did not lack either valour or discretion. Bold
achievement was hindered by instructions from Cabi-
nets, divided counsels, and the bewildering knowledge
of good reasons for a variety of plans.

About the 1 2th of August the Austrians crossed the
frontier and entered the Danubian Principalities, thus
coming to the aid of Omar Pasha, who was not free
from the fear of the re-invasion of the Russian troops,
who, worsted there, were retreating. When it had be-
come absolutely imperative to remove the Allied Armies
from pestilential Varna, diplomacy decreed that, as a
necessary sequence to events, a prodigious blow should
be struck at the power of the Tsar where it appeared
most invincible. By attributing the responsibility of
the momentous despatch of the 29th of June to its
writer, the Duke of Newcastle, even Kinglake, who

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. loi

swings his search-light on all machinations, or disguised 1854
influences, for which the Emperor of the French could
be blamed, exonerates him from the actual decisive
step which precipitated the Invasion. However, Louis ,
Napoleon's concurrence in every coercive scheme which
had for its object the punishment of Russia, was no
secret to the British Government. Diplomatic exigency,
which is sometimes a cloak for official sin, had made
it appear that Lord Raglan, Admiral Lyons, and
Admiral Bruat, amongst the highest in command,
were the only real promoters of the campaign.
Nevertheless, proof was swift and abundant that
their fears, which were not universally published,
had not been groundless ; and bitter must have
been the reflection of Lord Raglan when he had
to witness the suffering for which his counsel was
not responsible, well knowing that eventually he alone
might have to bear the nation's censure for a terrible
mistake.

The Commander-in-Chief personally was averse to
invading the enemy's country so late in the season ;
Sir George Brown was not in favour of the Expedition ;
and Vice-Admiral Dundas, whose supreme command
of the Fleet was independent of the orders of the mili-
tary Commander-in-Chief, gave very open expression
to his fears that neither Navy nor Army was ready for
such an enterprise. The near approach of autumn,
and the total lack of accurate knowledge of the enemy's
forces, and of the condition of Sevastopol, naturally
excited dubious apprehension as to the expediency of
the project among the Admirals and Generals in the
Black Sea and Bulgaria. Conflicting opinions no
doubt had weight in dictating Lord Raglan's reply
to the despatch wherein he stated that " it was more
in deference to the views of the British Government,
and to the well-known acquiescence of the Emperor
Louis Napoleon in those views, than to any information
in the possession of the naval and military authorities

102 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 either as to the extent of the enemy's forces, or their
state of preparation, that the decision to make a descent
upon the Crimea was adopted." *

The culmination of the horrors at Varna occurred on
the loth of August in a disastrous fire caused by Greek
incendiaries ; by skill and hard work the powder-
magazine was fortunately saved ; Marshal St. Arnaud
displayed great courage during the conflagration, which
totally destroyed a Mosque, 180 houses, and a French
store ; it was also reported, 19,000 pairs of soldiers'
shoes, and other valuable stores.

Suffering from a disease which was so soon to prove
fatal, he wrote to his wife, " God spares us no mis-
fortune, no calamity, my Dear ; .... I wish I
could find more resignation, but the most sublime
patience flies away at the sight of catastrophes so com-
pletely independent of the will, that are incessantly
striking down those around us .... a seventh
part of the town no longer exists. "

The rumour of actual warfare in the near future, the
gathering of transports at Varna, and the general
activity, filled the hearts of the inhabitants of many
Russian ports with dread lest they were to be besieged.
Certainty as to the destination of the Allied Troops was
not openly published in Russia. Well might a corre-
spondent at Odessa, remembering the recent bombard-
ment, write : " Every day we get through we take it as
a gift ; we are in great fear and in great need."

Excitement and bustle reigned in the chief town of
Bulgaria ; hundreds of transports, steamers and craft of
every description, and a forest of masts made a brave
show ; and, with the preparations, a more hopeful spirit
animated both sailors and soldiers. t It was considered

* Lord Raglan's letter of 19th July.

t August 3rd. — Devna. "Since I wrote everybody has been very full of our
going to Sevastopol. Sir George Brown has certainly been to look about and all
transports are being collected, gabions and fascines are being made at Varna by
thousands. We are all practising digging trenches and fieldworks. " "Letters
from the Crimea," page 56. — General Sir Daniel Ljfsons, G.C.B.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 103

that the sea air and change would have a beneficial 1854
effect on all who were strong enough to embark,* and,
indeed, the prospect of leaving the filthy pandemonium
Varna had become, with its surroundings of recently-
filled cemeteries, had already done much to cheer, the
ranks. On the 25th Marshal St. Arnaud issued a
proclamation to the French army, in which he said.
Providence had called it to the Crimea, a country
healthy as France, and that ere long the two united
flags should float over the ruined ramparts of Sevas-
topol. This prophecy proved illusive, but it was
decreed that its author should not live to see how
vainly optimistic his words had been.

Our warships did not carry troops, but were all ready
for action. The plan of the convoy was marked out
by Captain Mends, and it was he who brought the
captains of the transports together to intimate that
their aid might be required in the expected naval
action. Kinglake reports this incident with sympathy.
"The captains," he tells, "were not in the Queen's
service, but they were English seamen and their answer
was characteristic. They were not flighty men ; they
respectfully asked for an assurance that, in the event
of death, their widows would be held entitled to
pensions, and as to the question whether of their own
free will they would encounter the chances of a naval
action, they answered it with three cheers. It is not
by the mere muster roll of the Army or the Navy that
England counts her forces."

On the 1st of September the ist, 2nd and 3rd Divi-
sions of the French Army also embarked. Except a
small number of horsemen who were intended for escort
duty, the French took no cavalry, but seventy pieces
of field artillery, and 24,000 infantry. As their accom-
modation was inadequate, they limited the number of
horses for each gun to four instead of six. Between

* In Lord G. Paget's journal, August 7th, at Vama, he wrote : "A night on
board ship adds a year to one's life," page 10.

I04 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 five and six thousand Turkish infantry went on board
their own ships.

For the projected work of the Invasion, however, it
was compulsory to have cavalry ; and Sir Edmund
Lyons, alert to accept either diplomatic or naval re-
sponsibility, got a thousand safely embarked, as well as
sixty pieces of artillery completely equipped. The-
force of Blue-jackets at his command was ready enough
to prove that strenuous energy, and sturdy contempt for
difficulties, which the British sailor manifests in every
emergency. The French, who had not the trouble of
putting cavalry on board, were the first to be ready
for sea.

The flags of Admiral Dundas and Sir Edmund
Lyons were flying in the Britannia and Agamemnon.
Many a brave fellow had to be left behind with the
numerous sick at Varna, and bitter were their regrets.
The impedimenta of the camps, too, had to be guarded
by responsible men, who would fain have accompanied
their comrades to the Crimea.

Marshal St. Arnaud had had to crowd his troops in
the ships ; sickness developed even before they sailed
from Varna, and their Commander-in-Chief was also
anxious and ailing. Admiral Dundas suggested to him
that, as his vessels were mostly under sail, it would not
so much hinder the Fleet if he were to start on the 5th
of February. The Marshal, in the Ville de Paris,
left Varna with his sailing Fleet before the British ships
were quite ready for sea. It was said that the French
went out in better order than the British ; but there
were reasons for this, as many of their transports were
small and easily managed.

In Sir Daniel Lyson's diary we find an interesting
note written in the Victoria. " Just above the horizon
we see the nearest of the French transports ; they (the
French troops) are all in wretched little brigs and
schooners." Our transports were towed by steamers ;
but the French steam power had not equalled this

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 105

emergency, and the warships of our Ally, as well as 1854
those of the Sultan, were impeded for action by carry-
ing troops ; consequently the whole of that mighty
Armada was actually under the protection of the British
warships. The splendour of those lines moving towards
Sevastopol must have, indeed, thrilled the hearts of all '
■beholders.

"The vessels with the transports," Kinglake tells,
"numbered about six hundred warships, including ten
sail of the line, two of which were screw steamers, two
fifty-gun frigates and thirteen lesser steamers of war
heavily armed," and other vessels joined the Fleet
afterwards.* Much has been written concerning the
magnificent display the ships made, and of the beautiful
sailing order in which they began their cruise, the
ubiquitous Agamemnon darting here and there super-
vising the convoy. According to Ruskin, there is
nothing so "absolutely notable, bewitching and heart-
occupying as a well-handled ship in a stormy day, and
the developments that have taken place in shipbuilding
are mere matters of more money, more time, more
men, but that the sum of navigation is in the rude sim-
plicity of bent plank .... That is the soul of shipping."
Never in after times have the vessels of our Fleet come
again so near the ideal thus described. We have now
Titanic force and power instead of inherent grace and
beauty ; and though there is no longer any new World
such as Drake's galleons, with their "rude simplicity
of bent plank," went out to conquer, there are, in the
ships of to-day, unprecedented possibilities of devasta-
tion, which seemingly have a spell notable, bewitching
and heart-occupying enough for the peoples for whom
they are constructed.

The grim fiend, cholera, was not left in Bulgaria ;
on the 9th of September nine men were dead on
the Andes.

Nearing the shores of Crim Tartary the spirit of

* See Appendix I.

io6 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 General St. Arnaud failed him; he was mortally ill;
and the opinion of some of his principal officers seems
to have influenced his action, for he informed the
British commanders that " it was too late in the year,
too hazardous to land in face of a powerful enemy
having a numerous cavalry ; that the situation should
be reconsidered." Lord Raglan replied, " The enter-
prise was bold and dangerous, but the orders of the
French and English Governments left the Allied
generals with no option but to proceed."

On the loth Lord Raglan, in the Caradoc, deter-
mined that the armies should land at Old Fort, six
miles north of the Bulganak. We have it, on the
authority of Sir William Russell, that, "When the
Allies alighted on the coast of Chersonese, the French
had no cavalry, the Turks had neither cavalry nor
food. The British had cavalry, but neither tents nor
transports, ambulances nor litters, though a Russian
army was encamped within an easy march from Old
Fort."

Lord George Paget 's diary contains the following : —

September \\th. — Old Fort (ten miles from Eupa-
toria). The French landed the first blue-jackets about
8.30 a.m. and planted the tricolour on the sand, our
Rifles landing about an hour after. St. Arnaud not
expected to live.

September i6tk. — The French have secured for
themselves the right flank, that protected by the ships
and nearest the provisions, which gives the English
the post of honour and also of hard work.

I07

CHAPTER X.

A COMPARATIVELY Small forcc of robust, well-trained 1854
troops, of undoubted efficiency, is often of infinitely
more service to an invading Commander-in-Chief than
battalions of raw, young, and feeble soldiers, who
lack military experience, and have still to be acclima-
tized. Great numbers in the Allied Armies were unfit
to land, having only partially recovered from various
attacks at Varna ; many were weakly, and others were
sickening, even while the disembarkation was taking
place ; and, as we shall see later, these numbers had to
be made up by mere recruits. The crews of the Queen
and London having had greater immunity from the
pestilence which had caused such terrible havoc in some
of the other ships, were in a better condition for the
arduous task of disembarkation, but they suffered
afterwards from rheumatic fever, consequent upon the
necessary exposure in the water.*

The arrangements for the first night in the Crimea
were crude. There were no tents. The labour of
landing, which occupied three days, was performed by
the Blue-jackets- with unfailing good nature, skill, and
care. The ships in the fifties were manned by no
wild press-gang crews of criminals and desperadoes ;
disease and other causes had taken a good deal of grit
from the majority, but the resolute spirit of Nelson's
day was still ready to face any task ; and will never fail
to animate the British seaman.

* "The Crimea in 1854 and 1894," page 20. — Sir Evelyn Wood, V.C. ,
G.C.B., G.C.M.G.

io8 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 Sir Evelyn Wood relates that on the 14th September
" The officers landed in full dress, carrying sword,
revolver, with greatcoat rolled in horseshoe over the
shoulder, wooden water bottle, some spirits, three days'
cooked salt pork and three days' biscuit." * Prince
Mentschikoff did not attempt to disturb the landing.
Sir John Adye and other writers attribute this want of
enterprise to the probability that he was occupied
concentrating his troops on the strong position of the
Alma ; but he might have signally discomfited the
disembarkation, and possibly might have succeeded in
altogether preventing its being undertaken at the time.
However, the long strip of Black Sea shore was
protected from the enemy by a salt water lake, and he
probably rightly conjectured that both ends of the strip
could have been easily defended by those watch dogs,
the ships, whose guns would have been ready enough
to harass any interruption.

The first night in the Crimea the British troops
spent in the open, with a pitiless rain pouring down
upon them ; sorry indeed was the plight of the invader, t
There was no provision to keep the poor fellows snug
and in good fighting mettle ; 1,500 of the feeble and
stricken had to be carried back next day from the shore
to the ships.

The British Force (which moved forward on the
19th September) consisted of 1,000 sabres, 26,000
infantry, and 60 guns. The French had 28,000
infantry and 68 guns and the 7,000 Turks, who were
also under Marshal St. Arnaud. | Not much glory in
prospect for those 7,000 ; plenty of unmerited obloquy
when blame had to fall somewhere ; their portion was
stern; constant work with scant reward, for payment is an

* Ibid, p^e 25.

t " Few of us will ever forget last night ; never were 27,000 Englishmen more
miserable." — "The War," page 167, by W. H. Russell.

} "The Crimea in 1854 and 1894," page 29, by General Sir Evelyn Wood.
"Invasion of the Crimea," page 199, vol. ii. — Kinglake.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 109

intermittent rule in the Turkish Army, and loot is never 1854
an appreciable quantity. Famine and fever-stricken,
the Osmanli never gave in till death was near. Omar
Pasha had already felt the unceasing grip of dire
necessity in the Principalities ; his troops were neither
fed nor clothed adequately for the difficulties they had
to surmount. Yet, although terrible stress reduced
them to a pitiable condition, they were equipped with
the highest courage, but that was not in the giving of
their masters. It was always most finely displayed
when they were led by British officers, for their own
were both incapable and corrupt. Had they been of
different quality, the war might possibly have ended
sooner, for the Turkish soldier was patient, hardy, and
staunch, even when fighting fearful odds. Where the
vanishing point of a feebler patriotism would have been
reached, he endured privation with stoicism, and hunger
as though it were habit. Sublimely indifferent when
the commissariat failed, his indefatigable energy and
deathless loyalty sometimes made his Allies forget he
could suffer, and be weary like the rest. They found
that, though ragged and dirty, he would valiantly
persevere for long intervals without food ; and expect
nothing but the scantiest and meanest fare in the end.
The invulnerable speck in his bravery was looking
death in the face as a friend ; that was second nature ;
and it gave him the right to expect life hereafter- —
" There is but one Allah ! Death is Destiny ! " The
surgeons knew best what inspired the Believer with the
terror and dread an enemy could not rouse, for at the
very hint of an amputation he would writhe in exquisite
mental agony. The certainty that if he submitted to
an operation depriving him of a limb, a mutilated
body would be his in Paradise, was a prospect which
brought fierce imprecation to his lips, and a gleam of
vengeance to eyes whose glance was habitually patient
and calm.

And much could be written in praise of his foe.

no FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 the silent, stolid Russian soldier, for human nature,
with some variations and eccentricities, in primitive
characteristics is, after all, human nature ; and its few
dissimilarities are traceable to racial tendency, while
certain vital moral instincts are alike common to all.
It would be difficult to determine whether faith in God,
or fear of official injustice, makes the Russian soldier
what he is, docile and uncomplaining, however hardly
treated, but an implacable enemy, fighting to the
death — for what ? Does he know ? Have not even
his convictions been scared from his mind by dread of
punishment ? Of one creed have the priests made him
sure; he never for a moment doubts that the "little
Father," the ineffable Tsar, is God-elect. Millions
asserting passively the divine right of kingship are his
brethren, and he believes, if he has energy of soul
enough to believe anything, as they believe, in that
mysterious quality of the sovereign power. The Tsar
lives whether God is in Heaven or no, and, for the rest,
there is always work to be done for the Tsar. Loyal
and simple was the Russian soldier of the fifties,
though his mind had been dominated by a centuries-
old system, despotic and barbarous ; deprived of every
sort of freedom — no, not deprived, for that infers
whilom possession ; he had never tasted the sweets of
liberty, and was, in the Crimean campaign, little better
than a slave, whose taskmaster frequently rendered his
life a burden unspeakable, and happy his comrade
whom swift death made the conqueror.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

13th September, 1854.
I wrote a hurried letter to you this morning giving you an
account of our progress hitherto as far as the bay of Eupatoria.
Whilst I was finishing a note to Carrie the boats left the
ship, but. I am promised another chance in a quarter of
an hour.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. iii

We have not yet anchored, but most of the ships have, and 1854
all the transports are drawn up in line opposite to Eupatoria.
We hear the Caradoc has taken Marshal St. Arnaud, Lord
Raglan, the Duke of Cambridge and the various staffs right
towards the harbour of Sevastopol with a flag of truce and a
summons to surrender. This I cannot help feeling is a very
foolish proceeding, for the Russians are known not to respect
flags of truce, and may fire into the Caradoc and ruin the
Expedition. We left Baldjeh on Thursday, and have had
several days' delay waiting for the French fleet. They sailed
the day before we did, but thanks to steam, we over-ran them,
The transports have fared pretty well in these late gales, few
of them have been injured. To-morrow the Turks are to be
allowed to take possession of Eupatoria. I hope some of our
troops will go with them, for, like their Arab brethren the
French Zouaves, they think it a merit to shed the blood of the
conquered, and spare neither age nor sex. It is an excellent
landing place, this bay of Eupatoria. Here and there, as we
stand in, we see many camps. The Russians certainly are in
great force, but it will be hard if we cannot get a landing.
To-morrow or to-night will see. We are daily expecting a
reinforcement of 25,000 men from England. Oh, how cold it
is here to be sure. We are getting better and in high spirits,
and having great fun with the French transports as they pass
us. They always cheer and cry " Vive les Anglais" as they
go by, and we cheer in return, and the band plays " Partant
pour la Syrie." We see couriers riding with news along the
coast " ventre a terre." I shall miss the boat again if I write
more. Love to all.

TO HIS SISTER.

H.M.S. Queen,

13th September, 1854.
I have a brief time to write to you, to tell you we are
just about to anchor in the bay of Eupatoria, pronounced
Ef-patoria in Greek. It is a sandy bay with deep water,
about 25 miles north of Sevastopol. The French and Turks
have at length joined us, and the transports have fared
pretty well, and are now in their stations. They suffered
somewhat in the squally nights we have had of late.

We have had another alarm of cholera in two ships of war ;
the immediate approach of active operations will have a very
salutary effect in "removing much of the alarm, which is one of

112 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 the most fatal causes of the spread of this dreadful disease. At
Varna, the other day, the French were so fearfully overcome
with undue terror that they buried the sick before life had
entirely left the body. At last, they even abandoned this
practice and stored away the dead and all-but-dead in a barn,
whence issued such a pestilential air that the plague was spread
tenfold. Such terrors afflict even the brave at the approach
of death when the excitement of glory does not accompany
it. Our own people who are more phlegmatic, although
equally alarmed, were not so lost to decency. Many are the
terrible stories I could tell you even of ourselves, still none
were knowingly buried until life had departed, and the body
was at least cold.

The alternations of climate are very great in this sea
just now. The day we left Varna, the thermometer was
84 degrees in the shade. To-day the same thermometer
stands at 50 degrees. We must take Sevastopol to procure
fur coats, fur gloves, and nose bags, to be able to sustain the
rigour of a Russian winter. We land troops almost imme-
diately, and I do not see at present any signs of opposition.
The idea is, that three days more will decide their fate — or
ours ; the troops take but three days' provisions with them,
and no tents nor cavalry, thus, we are only prepared for action
instanter. It looks like an attempt at escalade. The scaling
ladders are ready in great numbers, but little done towards a
breaching battery, so that siege is next to impossible. The
difficulty in escalade is in making a suitable ditch so that there
is no possibility of placing ladders in it, as the bottom is
pointed and filled with sword blades and bayonets. The way
is to fill it up as men are shot by throwing them into it. This
is the only means the hurry of the moment allows. Such is
war, " glorious war," as it is called ! I hope, secretly, people
will run away from the troops, for those ferocious French
Zouaves, whom there is such a talk about, are the most
diabolical-looking men I ever saw. Fire, murder, rapine,
marked on every face. They spare neither man, woman, nor
child ; they did not in Algeria, and why should they do so
now?

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 113

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Kalamita Bay, Crimea,

September isth, 1854.

Since i wrote home yesterday, we have done a good deal.
Our letters were dated Eupatoria, from whence we weighed
at half-past two this morning, with a fair wind and moonlight,
and dropped down to this coast, where we arrived about
daybreak. By half-past nine the first boat-load of French had
leaped ashore and hoisted their colours. We left two divisions
behind at Eupatoria, which took possession without any
trouble, the garrison having surrendered at discretion. It is
a feeble place, and of no importance either to Russia or to the
Allies.

All day long we have been landing men in every
available boat, and at sunset this evening none but the cavalry
were left on ship-board. Our men looked well and hearty
for the most part, and are in excellent spirits, real work
having frightened away the cholera from the army of "No
occupation."

We have had several bits of fun to-day. The English
landed some miles from the French, and one of the first
was a gallant grey horse. The next was that hero of
pipe clay and buckles, crop belts, strangulation coats, and
Peninsular prejudices. Sir George Brown. Like a good
soldier, for he is such, and a gallant man too, he mounted
the horse and alone set forward to reconnoitre the Crimea,
allured, doubtless, by the bright expanse of plain and
mountain, river and tree, fields of corn and grass, and green
fruit trees innumerable, which then, for the first time, met his
eye. Probably, involuntarily thinking that the contents of a
train of bullock carts approaching him, if nicely grilled and
" done to a turn " upon those smoking embers which even
his rigid system does not deny to the cold and hungry
warrior, would serve somewhat to banish care and rules of
discipline from his soldier heart ; thinking, perhaps, upon
these delights, and, may be, the moisture of expectation
•already bedewing his lips, he, like many other meditative
men, forgot the fine things under his nose in the shape of

114 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 four Cossacks, who evidently desired the acquaintance of
the General more than he desired theirs —

" Sir George he turned, sharp was his need
And dashed the rowels in his steed."

The gallant grey never went faster, I will answer for it, than
when urged to his speed by the dropping shots of Cossack
carbines in the rear. He very luckily made good his
escape.

The country is covered with corn and cut grass ; some
Arabas (waggons) which were secured were found stored with
delicious fruit. Herds of cattle are grazing unsuspiciously
within a very short distance — in a word, there is prime
foraging. As possession was being taken of the bullocks the
drivers ran away, and because they would not stop they were
shot at, and one poor boy thus lost three of his toes. He is a
great object of commiseration, and lies extended in a cart
with crowds of soldiers standing round him, feeding him ! so
he may be killed after all by kindness. The French, as usual,
take the greatest care of themselves ; they have their little tents
pitched as soon as they are landed. Our men are not taken
such care of It is a bitter night, raining, blowing ; and yet
no soldier nor officer has more than three days' rations and
a blanket. These are old Peninsular abominations, and of
course must be acted upon in 1854 in the Crrimea.

The only umbrella in the army is in possession of an officer
of the Highland Brigade, who was seen to-day marching with
the troops, "sans culottes," with an umbrella over his head.
He despises breeches but adheres to ginghams ; evidently
the honest man has a strong aversion to showers and dew,
but suffers the zephyrs to play around his knees and cool
his nether extremities, with great complacency. It would
form an interesting cartoon for Punch ; imagine an historic pic-
ture, entitled, " Ancient and Modern Times Shaking Hands."

There was a smart affair between four and five of our
steamers and a Russian field battery of howitzers, about eight
miles from here down the coast. We could distinctly see it
with our glasses, and it kept up the excitement after Sir
George Brown's hunt was over. The howitzers were soon
silenced, and then the steamers shelled a large camp which
was within range. This was quickly cleared and set on
fire. I have heard no particulars, as the steamers only
returned from cruising at sunset.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 115

The Russians are said not to be so strong as we supposed. 1854
I do trust this is the case, but it is almost hoping against
hope, for surely the Tsar is far-sighted enough to have left so
important a place as Sevastopol fortified and garrisoned to
the fullest possible extent. There is an entrenched camp
between this and Sevastopol, containing some 20,000 men,
which is to be attempted on Saturday. I hope to be able
to join, for I may be useful on such an occasion, as very few
chaplains, if any, remain attached to the Expedition. John
Adye is here, but I have not met him yet. Our captain of
marines saw him to-day, looking extremely well. The cavalry
disembark to-morrow.

Friday istk. — A heavy swell which kept rolling in during
the night has prevented me doing much to-day. A few
horses were drowned yesterday, among them two of Lord
Raglan's chargers. We have heard the disheartening news
that there is a gathering disagreement between the French
and English commanders. The former wish to make either a
campaign in the Dobruscha, or to take Theodosia and winter
there, leaving Sevastopol unscathed this year. They even
delayed two days in deliberation on their passage out (a delay
inexplicable to us then), and it was only owing to the timely
arrival of Sir Edmund Lyons, and his use of some very
unmistakable, energetic language that the obstruction was
removed. This is very sad news. The troops are greatly
distressed for water, all they have being supplied in
" barricoes " from us. The nearest river is in possession of
the Russians and must be contended for.

By this time poor Mrs. Buckley will have heard of her
husband's death. I often think of her with sadness.

Will you tell George that I had a call to-day from Captain
Inglis of the nth Hussars, whom he knew in Dublin. He
now has his troop, and makes a famous soldier, worth three
Russians, since he is six feet four and big in proportion.
Most marvellous to relate, we have not seen the slightest
glimpse of a Russian. This is quite incomprehensible.

l6tL — At four o'clock this morning a signal gun was fired
and the troops marched. A few only are left behind, and
some of the cavalry are still in the ships. We expect to
weigh anchor presently, and I had made an arrangement to
go ashore, but one of our people died in the night and my
presence is required. The mail goes in half an hour, so I can
only say, love to all and good-bye.

Ever yours.
8*

ii6

CHAPTER XI.

During the autumn of 1854 the most enthusiastic of
fire-eaters had no cause for complaint in the Crimean
Peninsula, where occurrences of grave import, whose
nature it would have been impossible to foretell, fol-
lowed each other in rapid succession. The combined
armies, backed by prodigious naval powers, in absolute
ignorance of the defences to be opposed to them, and
even of the very ground where the first encounter was
to take place, descended on the enemy's country, and
combatted unexpected disaster, with as resolute a front
as they did the menaced difficulties which had been
already recognized.

A narrative, dealing with a young soldier's personal
experiences on certain memorable occasions during the
campaign, has been kindly written by himself, to
give the reader, where the action was purely military,
a more definite point of view.

Its author, Mr. W. H. Pennington, was long
familiarly known as " Gladstone's Tragedian." Many
years ago the statesman informed this admirable actor
that his " Hamlet" was the most original he had ever
witnessed, and that he "was perfectly in accord with
the rendering," and indeed, with reference to it, writing
from Cannes to Mr. Pennington, in January, 1895, Mr.
Gladstone remarked : " I have never forgotten your
striking representation of the character ! " All the

Mr. W. H. PENNINGTON.

FROM A PHOTOGRAPH BY BELL.

IROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 117

leading journals endorsed Mr. Gladstone's opinions 1854
of his " high capacity."*

Mr. Pennington was with the army of occupation
in Bulgaria ; was present at the cavalry skirmish at
Boulganak ; the passage of the river, and the storming
of the heights of Alma ; in the charge of the Light
Cavalry against the Russian guns at Balaklava he
was wounded, and his horse shot under him, and was
only saved from the Cossack cavalry by a comrade,
who placed him upon a riderless charger. He returned
to his duties the following year to witness the fall of
Sevastopol.

Mr. Gladstone did not learn these interesting facts
until long after Mr. Pennington's recitals at Carlton
House Terrace. The relation of them was in con-
sequence of Her Royal Highness Princess Louise
expressing a wish to hear some incidents of the actor's
life. His own words however best tell the story of his
exploits in the East with the nth Hussars.

MR. w. H. Pennington's narrative.

" All ordered to the East. I recall with feelings of
warm appreciation the kindness of Captain Inglis,
Lieutenant Trevelyan (now Colonel retired), and Sir

*The following is an example : " If ' the graces of a play be to copy nature,
and instruct life,' as Dr. Johnson says, then King Lear has found a most
faithful impersonation in Mr. Pennington's acting. It appeals throughout to
the truest human sensibilities, excites the sympathy and commands the attention.
It combines the dignity of the sovereign with the feelings of the father and the
man. It embodies the lofty fervour, the touching pathos and the dignified
passion of the great original. An ardent disciple and admirer of Shakespeare,
jealous for his honour and inspired by his spirit, he compels his audience to
travel with him through each act and scene, the sharer of his indignation and his
sorrows, thrilled not less by the terrible sublimity of his maledictions than by the
pathetic eloquence of his woe."

To those not within the esoteric ring of the profession, it may appear marvellous
that such an actor was allowed no place upon the boards of a West-end theatre,
but when Mr. Gladstone's friendship and patronage became known, so great was
the battle of conflicting interests among the actor-managers of that day, Mr.
Pennington was simply " boycotted " or entrusted with parts which might have
been adequately represented by an indifferent performer.

Mr. Pennington's portrait, the central figure — the unhorsed hussar — in Lady
Butler's picture, " The Charge of the Light Brigade at Balaklava," has excited
much interest and admiration.

ii8 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 Roger Palmer (retired Lt. -General) in charge of the
detachment of men and horses, sailing in the barque
Paramatta from Kingstown, Ireland, in the spring of
1854 for Varna. I should hardly think that regimental
records could furnish a stronger instance of good feeling
than that which existed between these gallant young
officers, and the rank and file under their command.

I do not remember any instance of punishment ;
indeed, I fail to remember an ungracious word. They
were officers who greatly disliked to bring trouble upon
anyone ; and I place this to their account with feelings
of the deepest personal regard.

I was, a very young soldier at the time, and had been
selected, with some few others, to make up the strength
of the regiment proceeding to the East, after only a
few months' service.

We had no irksome and unnecessary parades ; no
annoying espionage ; and I know each man on board
the Paramatta felt more as a member of an excursion
party, than an individual who had surrendered his
personal will for the good of the land he was leaving,
and possibly might never see again.

We were accustomed in the second " dog watch "
(6 p.m. to 8 p.m.), and often far into the "first watch,"
to assemble under the break of the poop, and, with our
officers seated near the rail, to sing songs, comic and
sentimental, while some related stories, when the merri-
ment was hearty and unrestrained.

We considered ourselves also as part of the crew ;
and our fellows required no hint to "tail on" to the
halliard after the reefing of a topsail, thus making the
work light for the " foc'sle " hands.

Our officers were anxious on arriving at Gibraltar,
after reporting themselves in the proper quarter, to go
ashore, but this was not allowed, even though with
pardonable ingenuity they urged, as a pretext that we
had a glandered horse on board, and that a stay should
be made to purify the " 'tween decks " and lower hold.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 119

But the devices of these gay young individuals were, I 1854
assume, apparent to the experienced old hand with
whom they were dealing, for the shore authorities were
inexorable, and we were instructed to "up anchor," and
to make sail without delay. I had myself previously
seen some two or three years' service as a sailor, having
made a five months' passage in a ship called the
Isabella, and subsequently I had served in two barques,
respectively the Briton and the Reliance. I had visited
Australia, the East Indies, Java, and Singapore, the
capital of the Straits Settlement.

I was accustomed to go aloft with the Paramatia s
hands when "shortening sail," and I remember how
nearly I " lost the number of my mess," when upon her
fore-to' gallant yard, as she was about coming to an
anchor at "Gib." The yard was being hauled "by"
the wind, in order to " shake " the sail for furling, when
it flapped over my head, almost throwing me off. It
was a very near thing !

It was not, of course, a matter of compulsion with
me to render this kind of service ; but perhaps there
was a little harmless vanity in showing better soldiers
than myself that I was a better sailor. By the way,
to stigmatise a sailor as a "soldier" was, in those
days, by no means considered as a compliment to the
maritime service.

I received the name of " Sailor Bill," and it stuck
to me for some time ; indeed. Captain Inglis, when
I met him upon the steps of the Post Office at
Constantinople some months afterwards (convalescent
from my wound received at Balaklava), good-
humouredly rallied me with " I think, Pennington,
you're a better sailor than soldier, though possibly
very good food for powder " ; but he was smiling as
he said it, so I knew his friendly sympathy and
encouragement prompted the words.

And to illustrate further the good understanding
which was so reciprocal, I received a letter very many

120 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 years after from Sir Roger Palmer (while I was starring
with a dramatic company), in which he wrote : "I am
sorry that I was not at Cefn (N. Wales), for I should
like to have seen you ; I often hear of you from our
old friend Colonel Trevelyan, and I should be glad
to have a talk with you over old times in the good
ship Paramatta. I wish you every success in your
profession."

I think all of us voted our officers "jolly good
fellows ; " few soldiers ever had a happier or less
harassing time.

The good ship Paramatta, having no auxiliary
steam power, was rather long (I fancy about six weeks)
in making her passage, though we were presently towed
up the Bosphorus, and into the Black Sea.

I can only briefly refer to the dreary and monotonous
months which intervened after landing at Varna, until
we knew for a certainty that the Invasion of the Crimea
had been resolved upon. It was a time having nothing
of lively interest to record ; but only of sickness,
misery, and death. We lost many a fine man in
Bulgaria. The Guards especially, and other regiments,
too, found themselves greatly reduced in strength from
the ravages of dysentery and cholera, and after so many
months of tedious inaction, it was a relief past expres-
sion to learn that there was 'every prospect .of work
with the enemy.

The landing in the Peninsula in the middle of
September was effected without opposition or disaster ;
the Light Brigade (the Heavies had not then joined
the Expedition) were posted in front of the invading
force, with only a picket of the Rifles and of the
nth Hussars between them and a possibly opposing
enemy.

And now an incident took place, which has received
but scant notice, of a kind most startling and extra-
ordinary.

We were in bivouac, without any covering but the

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 121

canopy of heaven; our horses were unsaddled, and 1854
most of the men were asleep in the lines. We had in
the twilight discovered that the enemy's cavalry had
fired the village and forage, at some distance in our
front, and were retiring, presumably, to join their main
body. I happened to be sentry on the horses in my
own troop lines (nth Hussars), when suddenly, and
without the least warning, shots flew above me in fairly
well-directed volleys,

With beating heart I shouted to our fellows, who
needed but slight instigation ; and, with trembling
hands, saddled and girthed up in haste. The aroused
troopers quickly followed suit ; fires were extinguished
as rapidly as might be under the exciting conditions ;
and the regiments of the Brigade were turned out and
mounted.

It was a pitch dark night ; and, to add to the con-
fusion, our outlying picket (believing that the enemy
had crept between them and their friends) came tearing
in, their fast-beating hoofs like muffled thunder, and
the ctatter of their accoutrements by no means allaying
the alarm.

We heard Lord Cardigan's voice in angry depre-
cation, as, galloping up, he brought confidence and
calm.

He exposed himself to the volleys still poured in our
direction, and, I believe, discovered that a lately
landed regiment of our own infantry was giving us the
benefit of its bullets ; having, in the darkness, mistaken
us for the enemy.

The men of the Light Brigade were at this time
mounted, and only saved from the fire of their own
infantry by the undulating ground interposed between
them. I have never heard any explanation of this
unnerving incident ; no Russians were near ; but the
sangfroid of Lord Cardigan was equal to the occasion
— unquestionable and remarkable. He rebuked
the officer in command of the pickfet in very severe

122 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 tones, and in the hearing of us all ; and one cannot help
reflecting that the novelty and responsibility of the
occasion, the extreme darkness of the night, the
vigilance to be exercised, the sudden and startling
volleys of musketry between him and his friends,
might have perplexed and alarmed one much more
experienced, and that the asperity and publicity of the
reproof were rather severe.

The following morning the Allies moved a short
distance from the sea, though at no great interval from
the line of coast. It was now known that the enemy
had posted himself in considerable force, about 45,000
men, upon the heights of Alma, which the Allies
could only reach after fording a stream running at their
base, and giving the name to these elevations.

The Marine Forces, combining the Fleets of Great
Britain, France and Turkey, must have presented one
of the most imposing sights conceivable as they moved
with their armies in the direction of the enemy.

The French rested upon the sea ; their right flank
as they marched being thus protected by the powerful
Fleets of the Allies ; while the Turks moved on as
reserves in their rear.

To " those island mastiffs," as we have been termed
by a great Frenchman, fell the more hazardous places
of the left, and centre.

In his seemingly impregnable position above the
Alma, the Russian had resolved to make his stand. Six
weeks, we have since learned, did he occupy in
entrenching himself, and practising the range ; and,
with platforms for the ladies of Sevastopol to view our
discomfiture, he had boasted that he would drive the
invaders to their ships.

But the Muscovite had " reckoned without his
host."

That stern tenacity and high courage, which had
triumphed on many a bloody field, in men not dragged
from hearth and home to serve against their will, once

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 123

more asserted that it yet survived, and pronounced 1854
that we still possessed the first infantry in the world !

But memory halts for a brief space to record what
occurred on the late afternoon of the day preceding
Alma — the 19th September, 1854, at Boulganak. As
the Light Brigade, the antennae of our force, felt its
way, the sun was slowly sinking in the west, when a
clump of lances was plainly visible at some distance,
cresting a slightly rising ground in front of the British
left. What numbers might be hidden behind we had
yet to learn.

Our Brigade, with Horse Artillery, moved steadily
towards what at first appeared to be a mere cavalry
reconnaissance, and prepared to measure his strength.

The enemy, with ingenious purpose, refrained from
revealing any part of it, until he had led us some con-
siderable distance from all possible support. He then
spread out his numerous cavalry like the unfolding of
an eagle's wings, and leisurely descended the slope.

His artillery opened fire, but failed to get our range.
Though his aim was direct, his trajectory (or curvfe of
elevation) was fortunately not so. His round shot
struck some yards in front of us, and bounded over our
squadrons' heads. But, in the meantime, we were not
inert nor idle. The 13th Light Dragoons had thrown
out a line of skirmishers. The enemy had responded
in like manner, but the fire of the mounted men on
both sides was most ineffective (at the present day it is
not the practice of the cavalry to attempt a mounted
fire). The skirmishers retired.

Our Horse Artillery made splendid practice, and
appeared to have silenced the enemy's artillery while
Lord Cardigan was advancing us across the intervening
space.

But the hazard of his movement had been observed
by Lord Raglan and his Staff. The enemy was in
force behind the slope, and his ruse was to draw us on.

An aide-de-camp from the British Commander-in-

124 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 Chief instructed Lord Cardigan to retire. It was well
that we did so. The enemy again demonstrated, and
renewed his artillery fire without any adequate result,
with the exception that in my own regiment (nth
Hussars) Private Williamson's foot with stirrup-iron was
shot away. We learned later that the poor fellow died
on board ship, after amputation of the leg, while on his
way to the hospital at Scutari.

The enemy's round shot, passing over our heads,
caused some havoc as they rolled away through the
ranks of the infantry, who were hastening up with
willing alacrity to our support.

I shall never forget the sensation of sitting perfectly
inert upon my horse, covering Horse Artillery in action,
as long as I can remember anything. There is nothing
more trying. Movement does in some way divert too
keen attention in the hour of peril and probable death.

. The Russian artillery even yet could not find the
proper angle of elevation, so fortunately no great
damage was done ; but one may as well be killed as
frightened out of one's life ; and I recall how some of
us more nervous fellows, bowing our heads down to our
horses' manes, as the guns of the enemy belched fire
(and, as it seemed to our excited nerves, at each par-
ticular individual), how angry and indignant was the
tone of Major Peel's remonstrance, " What the h-11 are
you bobbing your heads at ? "

In the dusk, which was now to some extent con-
cealing them, our brave French Allies had, with
admirable tact and at a most critical time, crept upon
the wily Russian with some strong battalions, and, sur-
prising him, poured into his flank a heavy fire, killing
and wounding very many ; thus rendering the regi-
ments of the Light Brigade a service, the importance
of which it would be impossible to over-rate.

The fact remains that the enemy had advanced a
division of his army, while the ground, though not hilly,
was undulating enough to mask his real strength and

MAJOR PEEL, iiTH Hussars.

THE LAST DRAWING OF WILLIAM SIMPSON, R.I., UPON WHICH HE
WAS ENGAGED TWO DAYS BEFORE HIS DEATH.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 125

intention, hoping thus to draw our light cavalry into a 1854
murderous ambuscade. To the British he revealed no
portion of the infantry he had in support. The Mus-
covite retired with cause to repent the failure of his
trick, our French friends having played the trump
card.

Night fell : we picketed as was the mode, each troop
in column of lines, the heads of our horses facing
inwards, with an interval of some ten yards between
each line, and unsaddling, deposited the gear in the
■centre of the space between the ropes, the saddles
•serving as pillows for our weary heads. Rations not
too plentiful we had received two days before ; our
•sergeants served us a " tot " of rum, and with our
'" martial cloaks around us," we disposed our bodies
upon the bare ground, while our blanketed horses were
•quite as well off as their masters."

126

CHAPTER XII.

1854 The march towards Sevastopol, with its gigantic dis-
play and terrible purpose, Prince Napoleon rightly-
named " une audace." The word may have been an
echo, sounding like a tocsin, through the confusion and
tumult of history, to the ear of this Buonaparte. Fear-
less Danton's charge to the French, self-constituted,,
revolutionary legislature: "// vous faut de H audace, et
encore de H audace, et toujour s de [ audace" was a pro-
phetic and fitting motto in the Crimean campaign,
alike for illustrious prince, and swashing trooper, as
events all too surely proved.

Three days' rations, which both officer and man had
each to carry for himself, were not deemed insufficient
for probable hazards, including an almost certain battle.
Sir John Burgoyne was not the only soldier who then
believed that the fortress of Sevastopol could be
stormed and captured within a couple of days.*

It was determined that the ships should follow the
armies towards the north side, but, although it was also
purposed that the movable column should have frequent
communication with its base, it was liable at any time
to be cut off, because the Fleet had no definite line of
operations.

Prince Mentschikoff had chosen a fortuitous position
whereon to oppose the advance ; to the adequate force

* " We all thought the army would take Sevastopol and re-embark within a
week or ten days." — " The Crimea in 1854 and 1894," p^e 27. — General Sir"
Evelyn Wood.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 127

at his disposal was added cavalry and field guns, which 1854
he had had time to place judiciously.

The river Alma, though of no great depth, formed
an excellent natural barricade, and numerous sharp-
shooters were concealed in ravines and entrenchments.
Moreover, from the enemy's height could now be
viewed with ease every movement of the Allies.

Many sick fell out on the march, and were left to
God, and their fate. " There is a world elsewhere,"
and, doubtless, in it the woeful mischance of this life
may not be remembered.

Preparations for land transport had been shamefully
neglected, and if a comrade had to give in, his dearest
friend had simply to go right on, and try to forget, with
as good a grace as he could muster.

Certainty of success in driving back the invader
must have been the dominant thought of the Russian
army on the 20th September, 1854, but ere the sun
went down the invader had proved that he was not of
the mettle that could be driven back.

No sound of bugle was permitted at dawn. Marshal
St. Arnaud, suffering from a malady which was so soon
to prove fatal, gallantly led his brilliant staff in front of
the British Army, and that day there was indeed no
reason for England to be ashamed of her Ally.

Though Bouat found himself with his division a safe
distance from the enemy, the French scaled a cliff that
had formed no part of Mentschikoff s imagined battle
ground, and Bosquet's artillery had to encounter double
the number of their own guns, and valorously the
French turned the Russian left.

Few of those fearless troops could have cared very
much for the object of the fight, if, indeed, there was
any reasonable object, save paying the debt they were
due to world-warfare in general, while some of them
were certainly altogether ignorant of the causes of dis-
pute— but grimly fearless notwithstanding. And here
we may resume the account, from which we have

128 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 digressed, of the exciting struggle that took place as
the heights were scaled, and which has as good a claim
as Inkerman to be called a " soldier's battle."

MR. W. H. PENNINGTON'S NARRATIVE— ((rfl»/j««erf).

" The sun rose brightly upon the 20th September,
the memorable morning of Alma.

The country traversed in our southward march was
(compared with the distant and abruptly rising heights
above the stream, upon which the enemy had estab-
lished himself) practically level, unattractive to the eye,
and relieved by very slight inequalities at half a mile,
or even less intervals.

The sun now shone brilliantly, and from his high
post of observation, the enemy, with the aid of field
glasses, must have anxiously scanned us as we moved
steadily on with no hurried pace to tire the men who
had such work before them. Sometimes the whole
army halted to draw breath, to collect stragglers,
encourage the weary, and to correct distances.

And here I may remark, that one of the troubles to
which cavalry is subject upon the march is the liability
of horses to "sore backs," and some have more tender
withers and backs than others. Every possible "pre-
caution is taken to guard against this trouble, but too
often in vain.

Upon a campaign where it is well assured that fixed
bases of operation may be secured, every man is
equipped as lightly as possible, and all superfluous
articles of clothing are left behind to be otherwise con-
veyed. We had nothing but that in which we stood
upright. The horse blankets were folded after one
pattern, and carefully disposed upon the animals' backs
and withers to present an even surface upon which to
rest the saddle ; and the riders dismounted at every
available opportunity, that their dumb friends might
frequently be relieved of their weight."

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 129

It may hardly be credited what a plague this liability 1854
to 'galled back and withers may become. A cavalry
soldier might well apprehend, in a literal sense, those
words of Hamlet to the King, in the play scene, " Let
the galled jade wince, our withers are unwrung."

Halted once again, for re-adjustments and correc-
tions in the rolling columns of infantry, a General of
Division near at hand harangued one of his Irish regi-
ments, concluding with " My lads, you'll fight well
to-day ? " " Shure, an ye know we will, your honour,"
a voice responded from the ranks ; while the
" hurroos " which were yelled by his comrades, justified
the confidence and expectation of the leader.

But, as a rule, as if with some prevision of the task
before them, the men preserved a solemn silence, or
talked in serious undertones.

At a considerable distance we had caught the glint
of bayonets in thousands upon the heights which were
soon to be so gallantly assailed.

As our army halted for the last time, to gather itself
up, as it were, for the approaching struggle, I heard the
grim silence broken by the ominous command, " Lead-
ing divisions, load ! "

The order complied with, all was silence again ; you
might, so to speak, have heard a pin drop, and, closing
your eyes, fancied yourself isolated from all human kind.

The moment was awe-inspiring and impressive in
the extreme.

To our right rear, we had full view of the waves of
infantry, in order as perfect as if for review in "the
Phaynix," or on the Common at Southsea, while, in
front, the enemy covered the hill ranges in thousands,
his bayonets sparkling like pointed diamonds in the
glorious sunlight.

The Light Brigade, with the Horse Artillery, were
in front, and on the extreme left, then certainly the
most perilous and important position ; for it could only
have been upon the left, that an attempt of the

I30 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 Russians to turn our flank would have had any possible
chance of success.

The enemy was strong in the cavalry arm ; the
French horse had not yet disembarked ; and the first
regiment of "Heavies" to join the Expedition were
the Scots Greys, who landed a day or two after at
the Katcha.

We were hardly yet in range of the enemy's guns.
It is said that he had forty-five in position ; and we
saw the bunting flying upon small " standards " which
marked every portion of the ground by which he could
be approached, as our columns deployed to give him
battle, and that he had practised his artillery for days
previously to ascertain the exact angle for depression
at every point which must be passed by the Allies.

His position upon the heights, was to him a vast
advantage, also his knowledge of the range ; while the
compelled silence of our artillery, always upon the move
up the steep incline, rendered it exclusively an infantry
fight upon the British side ; our French friends had
valuable assistance from the mortars of the Fleet.

It appeared to me an action simultaneous with our
advance, that the Russians fired the villages and corn-
stacks at theiri feet ; in the hope that the smoke would
be carried full to our front.

But it drifted down parallel with the stream, and
away towards the sea.

Our gallant Rifle Brigade threw out a line of skir-
mishers, before which the enemy's sharpshooters re-
tired. The word was given for the general advance ;
but some distance had to be traversed before the stream
could be reached.

The Russian artillery made havoc in the Light
Division ranks, but the smoke which it had been thought
would entirely baffle their assault, did some little ser-
vice in veiling them from the foe. Waist and breast
high they dashed through the stream, the Light
Brigade, with strained eyes, marking their upward

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 131

path. They went up as if on a holiday parade, and 1854
we could see their ranks diminished by the enemy's
fire, as the dead, dying and wounded were left in their
rear ; but they closed upon their colours, filling every
gap that was made !

We were prouder of them than words can express.
They never halted till the heights were won, and the
enemy was driven from the field.

The Guards and Highlanders did gallant service ;
but their loss was light compared with these regiments
of the Line. They conferred honour upon those who
led them.

The regiments comprising this heroic division, were
the 88th Connaught Rangers, the 7th and 23rd Welsh
Fusiliers, the 19th, the 33rd Duke of Wellington's
Own, for the great Duke had commanded them in the
early days of his career.

The Light Division was led with the coolest gal-
lantry by General Sir George Brown, who proceeded
steadily up the slope, with an apparent unconsciousness
of danger, which elicited the admiration of everyone
who beheld it. This experienced old soldier, who had
taken part in "forlorn hopes" in the Spanish Peninsula
in the days of Wellington, was in his sixty-seventh
year when he rode in front of the Light Division. I
believe the old veteran escaped unscathed ; though his
horse, according to Sir Evelyn Wood, was wounded in
seven places ! This courageous and practised soldier
was "red-tape" and " pipe-clay " to his fingers' ends.
He was even desirous of retaining in the field the un-
sightly and uncomfortable deep leather stock (or garotte)
which until this time had been worn by all arms of the
service, and which, to our great relief, had been dis-
carded by order of the Commander-in-Chief. He was
rigid to a fault in the observance of military etiquette
and routine, and I learn, upon good authority, that he
frequently expressed regret at the modern tendency to
a more elastic and open formation of the ranks, and to

132 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 the individual soldier beijig trained to greater habits of
self-reliance, believing, as he said, that discipline and
steadiness were being subserved to the so-called exi-
gencies of musketry. His conservatism, indeed, in
military affairs, amounted to a mania !

The brave Sir Colin Campbell commanded the
Highland Brigade ; and he was supported by the
Duke of Cambridge, with the Brigade of Guards.

Of the Light Division, not enough was made ; the
despatches were a trifle too full of the Highlanders and
Guards ; but this kind of treatment has invariably
followed whenever "crack" regiments have been
engaged. On the North-West Indian frontier, the
Derbyshire and Dorsetshire regiments, at Dargai, had
delivered two assaults, not completely successful in dis-
lodging the enemy (but which must have considerably
shaken his defence), when the Highlanders, delivering
a third at the moment of the enemy's wavering, com-
pleted the task which these Shire regiments had made
possible, and were exclusively awarded the credit which
in justice should have been shared !

It appears to me, all the conditions considered, that
the intervention of the Highlanders, coming fresh to
the assault, was a task of comparative ease. The
staggering blow having been administered, they de-
livered the coup-de-grace ; and I learn, moreover, that
they had the assistance of the concentrated fire of the
battery of artillery, which was unable to bear upon the
enemy's lodgment during the two previous assaults !
Palmam qui meruit ferat.

It was unfortunate that the Light Brigade had no
opportunity of taking an active part in the storming of
the heights of Alma. But the nature of the ground
when the fight commenced was not favourable to the
employment of cavalry ; though many of our fellows
murmured at our compelled inaction.*

* " From first to last no orders of any kind reached Lord Lucan from the Com-
mander-in-Chief."— " Our Veterans, " page 143.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 133

I am not, however, such a terrific fire-eater ; and 1854
was thankful to God at the close of the day to find
myself still in the land of the living.

Some unmerited reflections were cast upon us by
those who should have known them to be so ; but who
can say that we were not of infinite service in covering,
as we did, the weakest part in the Allied forces ?

We were most certainly under fire ; the Horse
Artillery lost one or more men, for I saw a cannon shot
cut off the head of a gunner as cleanly as the decapita-
tion of a criminal could have been accomplished by the
sword of the executioner.

A round shot passed close to Lord Cardigan, who
had self-possession enough to smile, but he moved his
brigade a little further to the left.

I can see no reason, therefore, why we may not, with
those more fortunate, be as proud of the bar for
" Alma" which is upon -our medals, as those who were
more hotly engaged, for we felt intensely the strain of
inaction ; and any reflection upon us then was, and
would be now, absurd and unjust.

Had the fortunes of the day proved other than they
did, our duties might have resolved themselves into the
most hazardous possible. A repulse would have fur-
nished us with the difficult task of covering a retreat,
for, as we regarded those eminences with their thousands
of bayonets, I inwardly felt that such an ending was not
absolutely impossible.

We had been furnished with rations of salt pork and
biscuit which were to last three days ; however, having
a hearty appetite, on the second day I had exhausted
mine, but I found one or two old veterans with enough
and to spare, and they generously gave me of their
abundance.

When the heights were carried, the Light Brigade
exploring to their left, found a bridge over which they
passed, and were halted and dismounted in the midst of
luxuriant vineyards. Thirsty as we were, with empty

134 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 water calabashes, how we punished those delicious
grapes ! For myself, I was more than satisfied, but,
the fruit being fresh and ripe, no bad result? followed
the indulgence.

We were suddenly ordered to mount, and ascending
a slope between the hills, were filled with pity as we
beheld how thickly lay the bodies of our gallant troops
who had fallen in their unhesitating advance.

The ground was studded with the dead, with the
dying, with the terribly wounded by shrapnel and round
shot, whose groans would have melted the stoniest
heart, and with others hors-de-combat from wounds
more or less severe.

How tenderly and carefully we opened our ranks,
that we might not hurt a hair of these dear fellows'
heads, as we made our way past them to the crown of
the heights ; I think it rarely happens that a wounded
or dying soldier is trampled by the hoofs of the
cavalry.

I remember how the Highlanders cheered us as we
rode to the front, crediting us with more than we had
earned, and how astonished we were to hear them.
They probably expected we were about to pursue and
engage with the enemy's cavalry, but we found him
retiring in perfect order. Of his numerous artillery he
left but two guns behind, and with two to three
thousand horse he covered and protected his retreating
battalions.

The Horse Artillery, having gained the crest, con-
trived to give tokens of their presence by dropping
more than one shell in the Russian ranks, but the
enemy retreated without confusion ; for, to speak the
truth, he was not easily demoralised.

So strong was the enemy's cavalry, our General
refrained from pursuit, and some of our fire-eaters
openly murmured. We secured very few prisoners,
and these dazed with the drink which had been served
out to them.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 135

Some opened casks of raw spirit had been left behind, 1854
of which many of our infantry partook ; but the casks
were stove in in time, for at such a moment of
excitement the sternest discipline would hardly avail to
restrain a few excesses.

The officers, proud of their commands, would reluct-
antly have disposed themselves to anger or harshness.
Prevention was better than cure.

In securing one drunken Russian of the Imperial
Guard, Sergeant Bond of ours narrowly escaped the
loss of an eye as the prisoner surrendered his piece and
bayonet. It was evidently an accident, for the fellow
was reeling and could hardly stand. Bond saw
this, and was cool enough so to regard it, for he did
not retaliate, and to this day shows a deeply-indented
scar as witness to the fact.

In front of us stretched away a plateau or table-land
of considerable extent, and it was upon the ground that
had been held by the enemy that the victorious Allies
prepared to bivouac for the night.

The action had occupied some two hours and a half,
and the British had borne the brunt of the fight.

Our admiration of the Light Division was loudly
proclaimed, and to this hour I love the very mention of
their name !

" The Light Division ! " What memories it stirs !
For us they had secured the victory of the Alma !

The weather had fortunately during these eventful
days been singularly propitious. No rain had fallen,
for the case of troops minus tents, and wet to the skin
without change of clothing, is really pitiable, and the
cause of more sickness than any other.

Much valuable time was lost in the three days that
the Allies remained upon the field of Alma. It was, I
believe, Lord Raglan's desire to push on at once for
the North side of Sevastopol, but the French offered
objections. Had we taken immediate advantage of
the moral effect of our victory, it is now known that

136 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 the whole of the defences upon that side would have
fallen into our hands. But the divided command was
not favourable to firm measures nor resolute action, the
French selfishly claiming every possible concession.
They had much easier work than the British all
through the campaign and siege. But so it was. How-
ever, we buried our dead, and the wounded were sent
away to the ships for transmission to the hospitals at
Scutari.

In view of the hysterical and fulsome professions of
attachment upon the part of the French for alliance
with Russia in the present day, I recall the ex-
pressions of hatred and contempt for their enemy rife
among our Gallic partners in the strife at that time.
One special illustration of this lives vividly in my
remembrance. I had strolled some little distance from
the cavalry lines, after all necessary duties had been
completed (ourselves refreshed and horses fed and
picketed for the night), when I observed near some
undergrowth of briar or bramble the body of a Russian
soldier, whose protruding brains presented a sickening
sight.

Elated though we naturally were and flushed with
victory, my mood at the moment was earnest and
thoughtful. A French soldier, also passing near, must
have mis-read the sympathetic and serious regard with
which I gazed upon the dead man (it was still twilight),
and possibly thinking to gratify me by the expression
of his sentiments, exclaimed : " Vive les Anglais !
A bas les Russes ! " at the same time administering a
vigorous kick to the senseless corpse ; indeed, upon
the battered head ! The brutality of the action jarred
upon my nerves, and, with an expression of unfeigned
disgust, I turned from the ruffian and left him. He failed
to understand me ; he regarded me with astonishment
and laughed! The whirligig of time has indeed
brought about a great change.

The following forenoon I strolled down to the river

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 137

to fill my calabash with water, still thick from the 1854
constant traffic, and returning up hill by a different
route encountered a scene which might have imbued
the least sympathetic soul with thoughts of solemnity
and sadness. It was where the bodies of the gallant
Light Division lay most thickly strewn. The horror,
nay the wickedness of war, I realised in all its dread
intensity. Moving away from the harrowing sight, I
observed a Russian sitting up, and beckoning me with
appealing gestures. I went to him immediately, my
face doubtless indicative of my sympathy. He grasped
my hands fervently, making signs for the water. He
drank it eagerly, but I saw that much of it escaped
from a wound in his throat ; I hoped that he was not
dangerously hurt, for he must have been untended
upon the field all the long previous night. From his
handsome and refined countenance, and fine grey cloth
overcoat with small gold shoulder-straps, I knew him to
be an officer. I was compelled to hurry on, for I was
shortly for camp guard ; but I was deeply moved by
the grateful fervour with which he lingeringly held
both my hands at parting ; it stirred my heart, and I
was conscious of the moisture that was gathering in my
eyes. He was to me, in his wounded helplessness, at
that moment of no nation apart from mine ; we were
one in the brotherhood of men ! Perchance he may be
living to this hour, and recalls the incident as lend-
ing some little grace to the rude harshness of a
day of defeat and calamity. The field was now
being actively searched for wounded, alike British and
Russian, and I told a party of searchers where I
had left him. " One touch of nature makes the
whole world kin.'

When I returned to the cavalry lines I found the
Light Brigade had turned out and was mounted, having
been disturbed by what proved to have been quite a
false alarm. I was sternly informed that I had no
business to be absent, and an order was issued which

138 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 permitted of the recurrence of no such wanderings.
With regard to the alarm, it appears that the appre-
hensions of some excited soul had transformed sheaves
of grain waving in the wind in the far distance (and to
the left of the country over which we had advanced to-
wards the heights upon the previous day), into columns
of Cossack cavalry."

Kelson Stothert appears to have been impelled to
hurriedly indite his impressions of the battle, with no
halt till the ghastly tale is told. The recital is sig-
nificant of a courage that was never divorced from
instinctive sensibility. The pen does not waver ; there
is no attempt at literary effect. The struggle, carnage,
and hard-won victory ; the breathless watching of the
Fleet ; the awful Golgotha of the morrow, with its
agonies, torture and death ; all described in two harrow-
ing paragraphs, as if each act in the tragedy had seared
its never-to-be-forgotten picture upon his brain.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Off Cape Loukool,

Sept. 23rd, 1854.

I do not know whether any news will have reached you, but
you had better send by telegraph to Mrs. Adye to say John
Adye is well and hearty. Perhaps he will have written himself,
if he has had time.

My last letter was addressed to you just as we all started
en route for Sevastopol. It was not until the 19th of September
that the Expedition, both by sea and land, fairly got under
weigh. When, however, the march really began, nothing
could exceed the rapidity of every movement ; the French
and Turks kept along the beach, and the English had to
extend their line far to the left to avoid an attempt of 27,000
Russian cavalry to intercept them. At this juncture the small
brigade of cavalry under Lord Cardigan was nearly cut off to
a man; his bad generalship allowed them to be surrounded

JiROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 139

on three out of four sides by a vast preponderance of cavalry 1854
and horse artillery, and only the hesitation of the enemy to
attack saved the brigade ; they drew off in time, and nothing
occurred this day but some skirmishes, in which a few men
were wounded, and at night the Russians returned to a position
so strong that Prince Mentschikoff, in a letter we have inter-
cepted, states is as impregnable as Sevastopol, and that he will
hold it against the Allies for six weeks.

I have now to describe to you the battle of the Alma ; an
action as remarkable, military men say, for its blundering
generalship, as for its gallant accomplishment. I will write
very briefly what I saw of it, and what I have since heard.
The ref)orters of the French and English papers will give you
far better descriptions than mine. We were, of course, pre-
pared to find the Russians posted in great strength, but no
anticipations had conceived the extreme judgment with which
their position was chosen. In their front flowed the narrow
stream of the Alma, fringed with willow and alders (which hid
its precipitous banks), and bordered on either hand with vil-
lages, vineyards, and broken ground. For about a quarter of
a mile on the southern bank of the river the plain continues at
the same level as on the northern side ; then it springs sud-
denly to the height of four hundred feet into a broken ridge,
receding in five or six places into ravines which are narrow
and steep-sided, and through which, with but one exception,
the only approach is afforded to the heights above. To a man
standing on this ridge, with his face towards the Alma, the
sea is on the left hand, washing the cliff which is formed by
the ridge ending suddenly in an abrupt precipice to the depth
of four hundred feet. On the right a pass leads away into
the broken and undulating country, which would well serve to
entangle an army unacquainted with its fastnesses. In one
place only could the heights be gained, except by the ravines
of which I have spoken. Here an old landslip, or some action
of water, has worn the spur of the hill into a gentler slope, up
which a horse might easily travel. This (to the extreme left
of our line and to the right of the Russian) was fortified by a
fieldwork and a battery of twenty guns. The ravines were
enfiladed by guns and riflemen, and a stone fort crowned the
heights. Thirty or thirty-five thousand Russians defended
this apparently invincible position. Upon the advance of the
French at noon on the 20th, the Russians fired the villages on
the banks of the river, and retreated across it under cover of
the smoke. The French kept close along the coast, and, at

I40 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 once scaling the heights, commenced the action upon equal
terms, having, by this gallant movement, deprived the Russians
of their advantages in point of position. The place had
appeared so strong that the Russians did not seem to have
anticipated an attack in that quarter. However, with their
usual determination, they obstinately contested the field, and
their artillery made sad havoc in the ranks of the French,
among whose regiments riderless horses €oon began to appear
galloping in wild confusion, whilst every shell that burst caused
a visible opening through which sunlight shone for a moment,
and then the place was occupied once more. Presently the
artillery of the French was dragged by sheer labour of the
panting horses slowly up the height, and in two hours our
gallant Ally had turned the Russian left, and were masters on
the right of the line. In the meantime the battle raged
fiercely down below, and you can imagine our agony of appre-
hension when we saw the Russian artillery pouring volley
upon volley down upon our unprotected troops, who advanced
slowly and steadily through the fire, our own artillery, by
some accident, scarcely replying at all. For two mortal hours
this deadly fire was plunged in upon our men, who, instead of
attacking the extreme right of the Russian battalions as the
French had done the left, were evidently ordered " to take the
bull by the horns," and were thus exposed to shot, and shell,
and rifle balls, which fell like hail upon their devoted heads.
The Russian shot was fired perpendicularly, and came crashing
from above, striking men down as they stood. Fifty men of
the 47th I saw in one shot, all in the order they had fallen, and
close together. They had halted to breathe, and were de-
stroyed in a very few minutes. The Scotch Fusiliers, the
Grenadier Guards, the 7th, 47th, and 19th, suffered very
severely. The 23rd has half its number missing, and the 7th
has but two hundred men and six oiificers fit for duty. They
went into action eight hundred strong, but when in front of
the battery they lost their officers and colours, and the whole
centre of the regiment was destroyed ; they retired for a time
through the lines of the 19th, then formed again, and, led by
Colonel Yea, charged. We saw them breasting the hill in a
strong, firm line ; the murderous volley burst from the battery,
and every adjoining point added its death tribute. The regi-
ment disappeared like a puff of smoke, a few stragglers only
left at either flank. But British blood was up. Regiment
after regiment pushed on. Cheers rose upon cheers. High-
landers encouraged Highlanders, and Guards called upon

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 141

Guards. They were close enough to use the Minie rifle, and 1854
now fire was opened with fatal precision and steadiness upon
the Russian guns. If the enemy had felt dismay at seeing the
redcoats silently, grimly, coming on, regardless of the iron
death, without firing a shot, how must their panic have been
increased when they first heard the British cheer, fatal prelude
to the British charge ? When our men leaped into the battery,
nothing was there but heaps of dead. Thus was the vaunted
position carried, and another laurel added to our national
fame. The battle, indeed, was not to the strong. For two
hours our men were under this destructive fire, and by four
o'clock the Russians were safe beyond pursuit. We have but
five skeleton regiments of cavalry, who are worked off their
legs. These cavalry, with the 3rd division, and the Turks,
with a large portion of the artillery, were not in action at all.
Captain Michell had given me leave to go ashore during the
fight to assist, but no boats were allowed by the Admiral to
land.

The behaviour of our troops caused as much admiration to
the French, as wonder was excited at that generalship which
had exposed men to such murderous carnage. The morning
after the fight, I landed with a lieutenant, and 50 men, to help
carry off the wounded. We took cots and hammocks slung on
oars, on which to convey them away to the hospitals on the
field, and men worked zealously and cheerfully all day, only
stopping now and then to " shake a dead Russian out of his
boots," as a man expressed it to me, for these are of " Russian
leather" and greatly prized by "Jack." The English and
Russians are taken almost equal care of, but the French destroy
all the severely wounded, a barbarity which we can hardly
bear to believe, though I dare say it is a very philosophical
mode of providing for those who must die. Instances occurred
of wounded Russians firing on those who were busy relieving
their sufferings, when, of course, they were instantly shot. The
poor fellows evidently had been taught that we were ferocious
fiends ; I had the pleasure of easing a great number on the
field by placing them in proper position, setting a soldier to
watch them, giving them water, and applying wet rags to their
wounds. They all appeared grateful, and whenever I passed
them afterwards recognized me as well as they could. One man
gave me a pencil and paper, and entreated me to do something
for him ; what, I could not tell of course, poor fellow. It was
very painful not to be able to carry out this duty. Our own
men bear their injuries with great patience and courage, indeed

142 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 such as I have never witnessed before ; but the Russians have
not been used to kindness, and scream more from apprehension,
probably, than from actual pain when they are moved. They
are exceedingly obstinate and dogged, and it is an unpleasant
task to have to use force to remove a man with a broken thigh.
Many of course, from the severity of their injuries, could not
be disturbed, and were left to die. Our duty was, nevertheless,
to remove all the wounded men, for there were no doctors to
help us by giving directions. These were elsewhere. I am
becoming a little bit of a doctor myself from some experience ;
I had a squad of cholera patients to prescribe for, whom I
found on the field deserted by all. These were of the 4th
Dragoons. Want of cover from the wet and dew (for the men
are not allowed tents, to the indignation of our French neigh-
bours), and other hardships, have again produced a prevalence
of that disease. The bodies were being buried as fast as
trenches could be dug for them, but even when I left at night
the smell of the field was sickening in the extreme. This again
will have of course a deleterious effect upon the sick. The
sight of the dead in thousands was maddening. Such wounds
and injuries imagination can hardly conceive. Sometimes a
man's head was perforated in four places by ball. This, of
course, must have been done at the same instant. Again,
another's whole front was driven in, or his legs carried away.
The majority of our men were destroyed by injuries below,
almost all the Russians by injuries above, which I suppose
arose from the relative position of the combatants. I could
not help remarking the expression of the faces of the dead,
where features could be traced at all. There was no distortion
nor look of agony, but everything as calm and peaceful as in
sleep The Russians are a fine lot of men, as big as our own
and much better " set up," and accoutred. Their artillery also
is better than ours, and had they the " morale " of the English
and French they would be our match. I should mention that
they are wretchedly fed on black bread that has the appear-
ance of peat earth, which an English pig would reject The
Turks were " nowhere " in the action, and are universally
execrated ; I think, myself, undeservedly, and have no doubt
that they will achieve great things in the next encounter, when
they are to be in the van. Still there is no doubt but that
their " forte " is behind a fort, as, perhaps, uncle George, being
fond of a pun, would say. My duty took me during the day
to the " Hospital," which is nothing but a farmyard surrounded
by a low wall. I am not sure but that the field of battle with

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 143

all its horrors, was not a more pleasing sight, or whether it was 1854
bodily exhaustion which affected me (for I had given away all
my brandy and water to the wounded, without being able to
have any myself ;' and my loaf of bread and Bologna sausage
had gone in the same direction); whatever it was, I could bear
the heat of the sun for a whole day in the iield, but I had not
been a quarter of an hour in the hospital ere I fainted away,
and found myself "sucking" a rum bottle, which a half-drunken
Blue-jacket had pushed into my mouth. In this hospital yard
400 men and upwards of the severer cases were laid upon the
ground. The wounded who could bear the transit were carried
off at once to the ships. The surgeons were steeped in blood,
working away carefully and skilfully. Of course, in the worst
operations chloroform was used as long as the supply lasted,
but this became exhausted, and the poor Russians had to
undergo all the horrors of surgery with its evils unmitigated.
The effect of chloroform is very wonderful. I saw a soldier's
leg amputated above the knee. The patient slept. The
assistant supported the wounded limb. The fearful cut was
made, the flesh sprang back, the saw was laid perpendicularly
to the bone, and the artery compressed. The layers of bone
were cut through without a splint, the ligatures applied, and
the patient was laid upon his straw and wrapped up in his
blankets, having never once moved during the amputation.
Have you ever trod upon an amputated leg ? There the front
part of a foot was in your way, here a hand, or a finger, or an
arm ! In another place a shrinking patient enduring the sur-
geon's probing finger. Somewhere else, above the groans and
the shrieks, came a loud talk of tibias, metatarsi, veinous
gangrenes, great arteries, upper extremities, and lower ex-
tremities. " Bother the tourniquet ; what do you want that
for ? " " Hold that artery between your finger and thumb."
" Give me some lead thread." Such a babel of horrid sounds,
sights and slaughterhouse smells, that, never having seen
human nature in such agony before, I confess to a momentary
weakness, but seek, as an excuse, a whole day's previous
exertions among cholera-stricken wretches on board and on
shore, amidst the dead and the dying, under a burning sun
and upon an empty stomach. But enough of this. The men
are in the highest spirits, and have marched to-day for
Sevastopol. The 5Sth have arrived, and will nearly make up
our number. I hear we lost 1,160 men, the French 1,200, and
the Russians estimated at as many more. Two Russian
Generals have been taken. I am sorry to say that we are sick

144 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 on board this ship, We have lost many men by dropping
cases of cholera, and now typhus fever has set in. Our
doctors are all ill, and the " parson " ditto, but we must hope
for the best. For many weeks anxiety has been ceaseless,
both for men and officers, yet we must expect sickness, for
this is the unhealthy month.

COLONEL WALTER LACY YEA, 7TH Fusiliers.

FROM A MINIATURE.

145

CHAPTER XIII.

Here to-day and gone to-morrow, is the too common 1854
record of individuals in the Crimea during this fateful
autumn of 1854, and the one pitched battle of the
campaign, so dear in the winning, abundantly illustrates
the saying.

And there is not much time left now for Marshal St.
Arnaud to make compliments ; not much time either
for the shrift of which he is supposed to be greatly in
need. Notwithstanding physical pain, and increasing
weakness, he is still mentally nimble and adroit ; and
remarks that the British soldiers had fought " like
gods." After his first stubborn experience of our
troops, the Russian, with scanter courtesy, but perhaps
more aptness, dubs them " red devils ; " and the
appellation, as well as the grim qualities that give rise
to it, survives.

How the soldiers had pressed forward to almost
certain death, tearing through shot, grape, and smoke,
the returns of the regiments in Codrington's Brigade
bear witness ; other regiments joined the wild scramble,
and it is told*'that Lacy Yea, of the 7th Fusiliers, at a
critical moment was heard shouting to his battalion :
" Never mind forming, come on, come on anyhow ! "
Gallant Sir George Brown saw no impediment that
could not be passed, though his brigades were destroyed
with appalling rapidity. The musketry fire upon the
Allies was incessant, and, at nightfall, many a brave

* "Invasion of the Crimea," page 335, vol. II. — Kinglake.

146 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 Paladin lay dead upon the field where he had fought so
valiantly and well.* It would be almost invidious to
single out names from the throng of heroes who were
killed or wounded at Alma ; leaders who could ill be
spared ; and men also who were sorely missed by com-
rades in the ranks during the terrible days of endurance
and toil that ensued.

The Russian force at the time was only indifferently
armed, " they had few rifles and carried smooth bore
flint-lock muskets, converted, "f When, after heroically
holding their superior position two and a half hours,
their fortunes were waning, and flight became a
necessity, terror lest their brass guns should be taken,
caused the troops of the Tsar to devote their energies
to removing them into the hollow. There is no doubt
they regarded these precious instruments with more
care than they did their own lives, and that the
retention of position appeared not to be of so much
importance to them as keeping their guns. Had the
number of our cavalry been adequate to harass the
enemy's retreat, the order of his going would have
been broken up, and these prizes secured ; undoubtedly
fear gat hold of the Muscovite ere he, in panic and
confusion, turned his back upon the Allies.

Each Commander-in-Chief had his own premeditated
plan of attack, so it was a natural consequence that
sudden emergencies arose which resulted in some con-
fusion, but the disastrous issues did not dismay the
survivors, though they had been eleven hours under
arms. Our Ally effected no little brilliant service, but
did not accord Lord Raglan the help he solicited.|
Officers, now venerable, on whom much of the brunt
of the messages between the Generals then fell, have
since stated that the most wonderful feat we accom-
plished in the Crimea, was, that throughout the whole

* See Appendix II.
t " Redan Windham," p. 25. — Major Hugh Pearse.
\ Lord George Paget's "Journal of the War," page 29.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 147

of the campaign, we "kept the peace" with our 1854
dauntless but difficult Ally, the French.

If to come in close touch with suffering and with
death, adds to a man's most vital knowledge, then the
day Kelson Stothert spent with his ministering Blue-
jackets among the mortally stricken, must have taught
him some profound truths ; not a few misgivings too
must also have been suggested, singularly inappro-
priate, from a naval or military point of view, on the
morrow of a famous victory.

Though yielding deep convictions, certain rude and
inevitable experiences exact their own price ; instal-
ments which memory compels its victim to pay, at
recurring intervals, to the end of his life. The un-
mitigated horrors of the battlefield ; the speechless
despair of the mutilated and the dying, proved a
ghastly and degrading sight to his thoughtful mind ;
an unforgettable, persistent nightmare.

Most of the British wounded were carried in litters
and arabas to the ships ; the French were better
provided with means of transport, for their vans, each
holding ten, and drawn by mules, caused less jolting ;
but many sufferers there were who could not be moved
at all. Of applications to ease pain there were none ;
and ere the close of that day of torture (the 2 1 st) even
the oil, which at the period was used for dressing
wounds, was exhausted ; water bandages, however,
were substituted and proved the quicker healer.
Recovery in no case followed after amputation of two
limbs, shock to the system mercifully putting an end
to the patient's misery. The small stock of chloroform
was soon finished ; indeed, there was insufficiency of
every essential — except courage, which the Government
had not to provide, else, in face of so much culpable
mismanagement, it is permissible to believe that the
supply of it also might have failed.

Our chaplain to the Church militant secured his
share of loot from the field of battle, for he found a

10*

148 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 tiny, pet dog peering out of the coat pocket of a dead
Russian officer. The hungry, dumb creature looked
pathetic enough, fulfilling the last act of faithful
comradeship ; even the terrible carnage, which, leaving
him unscathed, had deprived him of his master, did
not appear to have suggested desertion to so loyal a
heart. His new proprietor brought the lonely survivor
on board the Queen, and made friends with him too.
It is easy to imagine the merciless kindness with which
the crew to a man would treat this poor, little, be-
reaved and solitary prisoner of war.

It has since been considered, as it was openly
expressed among British officers at the time, that
combined and rapid action, following immediately after
the battle of Alma, would have had brilliant results.*
A naval contingent could well have cared for the
wounded. While the troops were elated with victory,
their desire to pursue the enemy might not un-
reasonably have been gratified, and they would thus
have been spared the disheartening sight of dead, and
dying comrades.

But the " audace" which had prompted the vigorous
assault did not prove long-lived enough to urge the
discomfiture of the vanquished. Prompt measures, in all
likelihood, would have worsted him, and the Allies might
have invested Sevastopol before reinforcements arrived.

But, though it was suspected, they were not actually
aware at the moment that, with only the supplies of
their field magazines, they would have been able to
rout the scanty number of sailors and soldiers in the
Northern entrenchments of Sevastopol, even though
this small Russian force was under the command of
the brave and heroic Admiral Korniloff.

Notwithstanding the panic of the foe after Alma,

* Why Menschikoff was not followed up on the morning or noon at latest of
the 2lst is a mystery. With the exception of the Light Division and a Brigade
of the Second Division, neither our own nor the French troops had suffered very
materially ; the men were in the highest spirits, and from colonel to the piper
cried aloud for marching orders. — " Our Veterans," page 147.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 149

and Lord Raglan's desire to press on, Marshal St. 1854
Arnaud strongly deprecated following up the victory.
A factor in the decision not to pursue the retreating
enemy may have been the knowledge that on the
morning of the 23rd, Prince Mentschikoff had sunk
seven ships of war across the entrance to the harbour,
to make sure that the vessels of the Allies could not
get close enough to play their guns upon the forts.
As the plan for taking Sevastopol, which must have
been quite obvious to the enemy, included the aid of
the Allied Fleets, this clever naval manoeuvre, though
it shut up the Black Sea Fleet in the Roadstead,
effectually hindered the inward passage of our ships.
One daring spirit, however, regarded the stratagem as
a possible means to a glorious naval episode, for Sir
Edmund Lyons wrote of it thus to his son : —

" The Russians have sunk five sail-of-the-line out-
side the boom at the entrance of the harbour. It
seems to me to be a deep humiliation, and after all a
false step, for although it places the crews of the ships
disposable for the defence of the fortress, it will, I
trust, be considered by Admirals Dundas and Hamelin
that it enables us to land i , 500 marines and 2 50 or 300
guns. What a magnificent thing, 300 ships' guns in
battery ? I hope it may come to pass." *

The Fleet offering the only practicable base, as a
secure harbour for disembarkation was a pressing
necessity, the sheltered port of Balaklava was fixed
upon as rendezvous for troops and transports. A base
upon the coast presented many advantages, not the
least of which was, in case of defeat, there would be
ample means of egress by the sea. And that the ships
were of constant use in the operations is proved by this
significant sentence : —

" Provisions and ammunition were landed as de-

* " Life of Lord Lyons," page 219. — Captain Eardley-Wilmot, R.N.

ISO FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 manded. If the Army wanted to be free of any en-
cumbrance it was sent off to the ships. Tents were
landed one day and re-embarked the next," * which
proves that the Fleet was always ready to carry out
every proposal for the convenience, and, as far as
was possible, for the comfort of the Army.

Without even a reconnaissance having been made
to ascertain the strength of the enemy's defences,! a
flank march, as a movable column, was begun. This
strategy, which was not held in favour by the greatest
military leaders, and, indeed, was deprecated by
Napoleon, Lord Raglan determined to attempt, as it
appeared the most feasible plan for the Allies thus to
accomplish their junction with the Fleet.

On the march, the rear of Prince Mentschikoff's
force leaving Sevastopol was encountered, when some
valuables, as well as despatches, were taken. A halt
was made seven miles from the Alma, at the Katcha
River. On the following day, the 24th, the Allied
armies reached the Belbec ; from the high ground
above this stream the harbour and town of Sevastopol
could be distinctly seen. Though it was hazardous,
swiftly and successfully the flank march effected its
purpose, securing a very important and sheltered base
of operations. The following letter gives some idea of
the impression that was prevalent at the close of Sep-
tember, concerning the near future : that the campaign
was to be of the briefest nature, culminating in certain
victory, seems to have been for a time the popular
belief : —

* Ibid, page 213.

t " The Coldstream Guards in the Crimea,'' page 89. — Lt.-Col. Ross-of-
Bladensburg, C.B.

TROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 151

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Sept. 26th, 1854.

The traces of the battle have been removed, we learn, and
the wounded Russians have been sent to Odessa with a flag of
truce. It is doubtful, however, if they will be received, for the
brutal Russians have refused them as yet, saying, " Those who
wounded had better cure them." Prince Mentschikoff took a
French officer prisoner, and we hear that when the captive was
brought before him, he had his order and epaulets torn off, and
was treated with the greatest indignities. I should like to give
Mentschikoff four dozen myself The troops have pushed on
to Balaklava (seven or eight miles south of Sevastopol), which
is now in our possession. From this we march on again to
Sevastopol, and have every hope of getting the place this
week.

We are rather better in this ship, and have had but five fatal
cases of cholera, and one or two of fever. It is a trying posi-
tion to me, but it has its advantages. Very little quailing I
now feel at any complication of horrors.

I have staying with me my Hungarian friend, Eber. He
has come on a visit to Sir Edmund Lyons, and is bent upon
seeing something of affairs here. Unfortunately he missed the
Alma.

The weather is still exceedingly hot, and shooting must be
very hard work in this part of the world. I wish I had a gun
for the winter. If we stay in the Crimea there will be plenty
of sport, or near Constantinople it will be still better.

The Arrow, gunboat, has come out, and is to be tried to-
day. We expect the Beagle to follow shortly. She is now,
we hear, in the Dora passage, just off the Egina. The reports
to-day are that Prince Mentschikoff has fled from Sevastopol,
taking fifteen thousand troops with him, to attempt to form a
junction with a vast force now coming down from the Princi-
palities. It is not probable, however, that the Prince would so
wantonly desert his post, for, under the circumstances, it would
amount to nothing less. The French took possession of a fort
at the head of the harbour yesterday, and blew it up. This fort

152 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 commanded the aqueduct, so that the supply of water is cut
off. It is said that the Army will now take Sevastopol with-
out any assistance from the Fleet. This is unpleasant, for
although we have freed the seas, carried supplies, and con-
voyed the troops, yet our exertions have been more passive
than active. Many a brave officer who has done good work of
late, and suffered grievous hardships, will see promotion given
to a few favourites of fortune only. I have just had £'^ sent
me by the Admiralty as part of my extra expenses here.
This is but a small portion of what I have spent. It is an
ungrateful Service ! Good-bye.

The French troops and siege material w^ere landed
in the bays of Kamiesh (or Cossack) and Stretleskaia,
situated to the north-east of Cape Chersonese, between
that point and Sevastopol. Kazatch,* and Kamiesh
which our Ally retained as his base, were respectively
recognised as being in the occupation of the British
and French Fleets. In Kamiesh there was always one
British, and in Kazatch one French, warship, a conve-
nient arrangement which naturally resulted from the
Alliance.

The two corps of the French army placed their Right
under General Forey, with the third and fourth
divisions facing the ravine which trends towards the
harbour, and their Left on Stretleskaia Bay. But
General Bosquet, with the first and second divisions
and the Turkish contingent, was entrenched on the
Sapun6 ridge facing the East, not far from the Woron-
zoff road, where, Lord Raglan remarked in a despatch,
he was advantageously placed for the defence of the
ridge.

It is contended that immense labour and sufferiiigf
would have been saved had our troops and munitions
been landed on the Kamiesh shore, where an ordnance
wharf might have been quickly constructed. The
position which the British could have taken up would

* Also called Double Bay, as it is divided into two parts, though in reality it
was merely a somewhat important double creek, of which the French transports,
moored in tiers, soon monopolised the upper, and only safe, part.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 153

have had a more circumscribed area to defend, with an 1854
accessible base, though much more exposed to wind
and weather than Balaklava, for the Fleets found these
bays of Kazatch and Kamiesh dangerous indeed when
the storms were prevalent.

The avoidance of the terrible pass over the Col de
Balaklava would have been important, for that up-hill,
mud track was converted into a highway where, for
months, the foul smell of putrid carcases was the only
sign-post ; and through it, men and animals alike,
under grievous burdens, had to flounder and struggle
till they won the heights exhausted, or were worsted by
the way. The use of the metalled Woronzoff road was
retained only till the 25th October. Its exposure to the
fire of the enemy soon gave it the name of " the valley
of the shadow of death."

The curious inconvenient port of Balaklava now
became our base of operations. The narrow entrance
was between high cliffs, which appeared to have been
split by a convulsion of nature. This land-locked har-
bour was about a mile long, twelve hundred feet wide,
and varied in depth, though it had enough water in
shore to allow of ships coming close alongside ; but
owing to the narrowness of the inlet, they could make
their way only very slowly, while later, the numerous
steam and sailing transports that, moored in tiers, were
crammed into the port, left but scant space for vessels
to haul in and out.

The Leander (guardship) was subsequently berthed
on the starboard side of the harbour in about six
fathoms ; on the rocks, facing the entrance, was painted
in large white letters the name, " Leander Bay."

The meagre strip of ground, on which stood the
insignificant town, was backed by almost perpendicular
hills, and yet troops, vast siege material, and all muni-
tions, had to be there landed on an ordnance wharf,
fitter for the disembarkation of Lilliputian military bag-
gage, than for the cannon, gun carriages, and innumer-

154 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 able stores, necessary for a great besieging army in an
enemy's country. It soon became the stage for many
a grave dispute, many a gigantic blunder, and many a
heartrending scene. Miniature battles were daily
fought there by luckless messengers from the different
camps, who had trudged weary miles to procure such
humble provisions as salt pork, rum and biscuits. The
gnawings of hunger gave a keen spur to men who
knew that comfortless battalions, suffering from the
same distress as they were experiencing, were awaiting
their return. To secure enough of the often scanty
stores was a deadly serif)us matter to these eager
heroes of the commissariat, who frequently had to carry
the unwieldy supplies obtainable, over the impossible
roads which even the horses refused to take.

On arrival, however, our invincible Blue-jackets and
tireless troops worked as cheerily as though all the
arrangements had been perfect, and bravely faced the
unforeseen difficulties, which the Russians must have
rejoiced to recall as insurmountable hindrances to an
advance. Balaklava is situated about eight miles from
Sevastopol. From the head of the great harbour down
to the coast, four miles west of Balaklava, the upland
of the Chersonese is bounded by the line of hills called
the Sapund Ridge. On the eastern side of this ridge
the land descends suddenly into the valley of the
Tchernaya. The upland is intersected by ravines,
which take a north-westerly direction from the ridge.

The British had to protect an extended position
facing the suburb of Karabelnaya, their Left being in
touch with the French, and their Right a short distance
from the Sapund heights.

The Russians, knowing how weak were their defences
on the side towards the enemy — indeed, on the 23rd
of September they were all inadequate, excepting those
commanding the harbour — not a day was lost in plan-
ning earthworks and fortifications. Colonel Todleben,
a military engineer of unsurpassed genius, and Admiral

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 155

Korniloff strenuously laboured to devise and set up 1854
entrenchments and batteries, which the crews of the
sunken ships, night and day, helped to construct ; these
appeared as if by magic. In a few days impregnable
strongholds confronted the Allies, among whom the
idea was gaining ground that a siege could not be
evaded ; and that when the bombardment of the town
should take place the Fleet would be required. The
brief victorious assault of the citadel, planned in the
mimic warfare of Downing Street and the Tuileries,
was a dream of the past. Happily the future was a
sealed book.

The Allies had hardly yet adequately realised* the
power of the fronting line of defence, which was hourly
becoming more resistless. From Redan to Malakoff,
and on to the Little Redan, no vulnerable point was
left, and the gigantic works, which were so rapidly
completed, proved the forceful genius of the engineer-
in-chief, who was the moving spirit of these prepara-
tions. Even the guns of the ships in the harbour were
placed in position for firing along the ravines of the
town.

The rejection, by the French, of the plan for imme-
diate assault was exactly what the enemy wanted, as it
enabled him to complete his works for resisting a siege.
It was soon to be generally acknowledged that, to
ensure success, an attack on Sevastopol must be simul-
taneous by sea and land.

And on Friday, the 29th of September, Marshal St.
Arnaud was carried from Balaklava on board the
Berthollet, sorely stricken by disease. Ere the ship
reached the Bosphorus, his spirit had fled. Surely
death was signally indiscreet to claim so gallant a
victim at such a time. It was pathetic that he who
loved life so well, who got the heart out of it according
to his desires, should have been denied the three score

156 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 years upon which humbler folk often reckon not in
vain. It is not difificult to imagine how Paris would
have received this debonnaire soldier of fortune, had
he returned there when the war was done — with a smile
and a muttered cheer, for Paris could be gay when the
Emperor willed, though the coup d'etat was unfor-
gotten. It was sad, indeed, that this notable Com-
mander-in-Chief had to die with no more pomp nor
ceremony than the meanest soldier in the ranks. Sad
is it, also, that it should occur to us to surmise that it
doubtless took all his bravery to receive the grim King
of Terrors with the dignity and composure that befitted
so famous, so distinguished, so valorous a Marechale
de France.

157

CHAPTER XIV

TO HIS MOTHER.

Off Sevastopol,

October ist, 1854.

Matters progress but slowly, although I hope securely. Since
I wrote last to you a most masterly series of evolutions, under
Lord Raglan, has placed the whole of the district around
Sevastopol in possession of the Allies, who have advanced and
taken Balaklava, which is a little fishing town upon the estate
of Prince Mentschikoff, admirably suited for keeping up a
communication in the rear between the Fleet and the Army.
This rear post is held by a squadron of ships, aided by a
Brigade of Marines, 1,400 strong. The latter left us two days
ago.

To-day we have sent off a detachment of Blue-jackets,
together with Jo guns of heavy calibre, to assist the siege
train of the army. The Blue-jackets are 1,500 in number,
commanded by 18 lieutenants and midshipmen, one post
captain, and two commanders. From our own ship we have
sent Commander Burnett, Lieutenant Partridge, Lieutenant
Douglas,* Mr. Sanctuary (mate) and Evelyn Wood, midship-
man, with 140 men, on board the Sanspareil and Firebrand
for conveyance to Balaklava.f

The parallels do not seem to be sufficiently complete to
allow of a breaching battery to commence operations against

* This messmate was much beloved by others as well as by Kelson Stothert ;
General Sir Evelyn Wood, in describing these officers, wrote of him — " Douglas,
brave, tender, and true, as befitted one bearing the name." That he exceeded
his duty when need arose, the log of the Queen appears to indicate, for the two
days after Alma his is the name that occurs as bringing the wounded on board,
and sorry freights indeed those boat-loads must have been.

t The Queen was at this date anchored at the Kara River, which was her usual
station till the middle of November.

158 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 the walls, for no guns have yet been fired. I anticipate that
greater difficulties are in the way than were supposed to exist,
and the Russians have already thrown up strong entrench-
ments against us, which are defended by artillery of immense
strength. The iield works of the combatants are very power-
ful, and the coming contest will be a fair trial of the respective
prowess of both armies. Prince Mentschikoff has deserted
Sevastopol, leaving General MuUer in command. This is a
very wise step on his part, as it will give him an opportunity
of re-organizing his army, and forming a junction with the
army of the Principalities, whose arrival we daily fear, and,
moreover, will leave the chief conduct of affairs in the hands of a
general as superior in military science to himself (MentschikofiQ
as all the German officers are to those of the genuine Musco-
vite stock. Doubtless this fact has come to Lord Raglan's
ears, and has caused him to alter his plan of attack from that
of a ' coup de main ' to the operations of a regular siege, which,
although slower, are more certain, and always to be under-
taken at a less sacrifice to human life. We, in the Fleet, are
well satisfied with Lord Raglan, whose dashing and yet
cautious movements mark him (we think) as a great chief,
while, on the other hand, we are thoroughly dissatisfied with
the apathy and slowness of our own Commander.

Last night a little entertainment was given to the Sevasto-
politans by a squadron of our steamers advancing silently to
the foot of the walls and pouring in several broadsides of shot
and shell upon the sleeping garrison. We have taken a good
many prisoners, and some of them are on board here. I have
made acquaintance with a captain Papa-Christo, who, as you
may suppose from his name, is a Greek. He hates the
Russians, and tells us the feeling of the peasants is in favour of
the English, who, they hear, are benevolent and kind to the
poor. I am afraid, however, the specimens they will see of our
countrymen will not increase their affection. I sent a letter
to-day from Papa-Christo to Madame and the piccolo. The
poor fellow was very grateful for this act of charity.

2nd October. — The whole of the marine force of the Navy
has been landed, to the number of nearly 3,cxx) strong.
Several regiments of cavalry are here, and French reinforce-
ments are expected, as it is known the transports which carry
them are on their road, but they have not yet arrived, in
consequence of having been dispersed in one of the heavy

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 159

gales which rage so terribly in these seas at this time of the 1854
year. I hope no mischance will attend them, for we have been
extremely fortunate since our landing. The weather is
getting colder, which is a matter of thankfulness, for, although
not of great consequence in England, still the climate
influences all very much here. The sickly season is going
on, and we in this ship are losing men fast from fever. The
cholera partially spared us, but we have now another enemy
to fear. I have been reading accounts of the cholera in
England ; doubtless you are all much alarmed, but these
reports are nothing to the concentrated horrors we have
endured. I had hoped to have been able to have sent you an
account of the capture of Sevastopol, but the place has been
found so strong that great precautions are necessary. Sir J.
Burgoyne says, when all his preparations are made, three days
will complete the affair. In the meantime we wait patiently.
I cannot delay to write more now. Kindest love to all.

In the light of after events the 2nd of October,
1854, was a memorable date in the annals of the
campaign. Neither Kelson Stothert, nor anyone else,
divined, at the time, the importance of the results that
would accrue from Admiral Dundas's compliance with
Lord Raglan's request for men and guns to aid in the
work of siege preparation.

It is possible that the foresight of the Commander-
in-Chief reached beyond the colossal labour of carrying
the needed artillery and munitions up to the front, to
the trench work in store for sailor and soldier alike.
It is also possible he had in his mind the reasonable
conjecture that the presence of the seamen, whom
emergency stimulated to the most resourceful activity,
would be a constant and cheerful encouragement to
the troops. Whether facts proved this conjecture
right or no, the unflagging endurance and splendid
vigilance of both services, during the siege, could
never be overpraised.

In the Fleet readiness and alacrity were manifested
to yield immediate acquiescence to the request
of the Commander-in-Chief, for an irritating con-

i6o FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 viction had asserted itself among the officers and
crews that they would have to forego the privilege
of full participation in the actual warfare. After
the enemy's ships were imprisoned in the Roadstead
of Sevastopol, a great sea fight was out of the
question ; and bitter disappointment was naturally
felt when it became sure that the Allied Fleets
would have no opportunity of being pitted, in
the Euxine, against the naval power of Russia.

It has been broadly hinted that some expedient
should have been devised which would have resulted
in an inevitable contest. Even the great historian of
the War has inferred that more might have been
attempted by the British Fleet.* But it must not be
forgotten that our sea dogs were fettered by the leash
of an Alliance with a Military Power, whose naval
tactics were not developed by centuries of sea fights ;
and whose sailors were not the descendants of mariners
who, from reign to reign, volunteered, and even
manned their own vessels, to uphold the honour of
Sovereign and country on every sea.

Under other conditions the mere " inert resistance of
six or seven drowned ships " would, alone, hardly have
held in check the fearless spirit of those who com-
manded the ubiquitous Agamemnon, the daring QueeUy
or the ready Vengeance whose alert evolutions would
have been eagerly displayed in an encounter where
fighting was certain, and peril sure. It is impossible to
estimate the enthusiasm which the prospect of such an
engagement would have roused. Not a ship would
have held back ; and it would have been difficult for
any Admiral to restrain such — i^membering Odessa we
may surely say — reckless craft as the saucy Aretkusa, or
the dauntless Terrible with her score of restive guns.
The Terrible could not give quite so good an account
of herself later, when her sting was partly drawn by

* " Invasion of the Crimea," vol. III., page 277, — Kinglake,

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. i6i

the taking of four of her 68-pounders for the land 1854
defence.

To hazard the war ships of that day against coast
fortifications, invulnerable as those of Russia, was a
well-known risk ; yet the Fleet undertook the risk
willingly enough whenever it was deemed advisable.
Our Chaplain's letters, of this period, manifest the
general anxious naval temper at the time, as well as
satisfaction that the Service was not to be mulcted of
her share in the actual warfare.

The Marine force had been landed for the defence
of the heights above Balaklava, under the command of
Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas Hurdle, R.M. ; it included
35 officers and 1,200 men, who, at once, commenced
an entrenchment extending about two miles. To this
was afterwards added an outer line of defence consist-
ing of Redoubts in which we shall presently find
Turkish soldiers.

The entrenchment reached from the gorge to
Kadikoi, a village or hamlet notable for its association
with two eminent persons. Here Sir Colin Campbell
with his 93rd Highlanders and a Field Battery, guarded
the approach to Balaklava by land.*

Here also, at Little Kadikoi, Mother Seacole set up
her store-dispensary-hospital, and became historic by
right of good deeds, which is almost the rarest claim.
Are not the pages of history embellished principally
with the portraits of self-seeking, lying, and fool-hardy
vagabonds, whose timely hanging would have saved
posterity much fruitless study ? If contrast evolves dis-
tinction, a virtuous man or woman has enviable claims
to fair renown in such company. In the "good old
days " the secret poisoning of an enemy, or a thrust
in the dark, was considered justifiable ; yet even in an

* A despatch from Lord Raglan contains the following: — "The British
Cavalry, some Turkish Infantry, a considerable body of British Marines formed
into two Battalions, the 93rd Regiment and a Battalion of Detachments, occupy
the plain in front of the heights above and before Balaklava, so as to cover our
communications with that place."

i62 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 enlightened century Mother Seacole stands out pre-
eminent, and cannot be passed over. She had the
secret of a recipe for cholera and dysentery ; and
liberally dispensed the specific, alike to those who
could pay and to those who could not. It was
bestowed with an amount of personal kindness which,
though not an item of the original prescription, she
evidently deemed essential to the cure, and innumer-
able sufferers had cause to be grateful for her
' ' sovereign'st thing on earth " for their ills, as well as
for her "gentle deeds of mercy."

The Naval Brigade was formed of officers and men
from the Britannia, Agamemnon, Albion, Rodney,
Trafalgar, Bellerophon, Vengeance, London, Diamond,
and Queen. The force was commanded by Captain
Lushington, who had done gruesome work after Alma ;
as late as the 26th September he found some still
living among the Russian dead on the battlefield, and,
after separating them, got the wounded on board ship
for conveyance to Odessa. Heroic Dr. Thomson, of
the 44th, who, with a single assistant, had remained in
these shambles, died a few days afterwards of cholera.

Captain Peel, of the Diamond, Captain Moorsom,
and Commanders Randolf and Burnett were appointed
to act under Captain Lushington, all officers of cha-
racter, and known bravery.

With the contingent from the Queen was a certain
determined, young midshipman, to whom nothing in
Heaven or earth then appeared of such vital import-
ance as obtaining permission to join the Expedition,
and getting into the thick of the strife. Possibly at
that date he wanted to see "all the fun"; but his
anxiety foreshadowed the fervent military spirit of his
whole career, for, boy and man, he has since been chief
of many an almost impossible undertaking, and the
trusted leader of valiant deeds not a few.

That eager young midshipman was Evelyn Wood.

At the end of twelve months there were not many of

MRS. SEACOLE.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 163

the original number ; probably some had been pro- 1854
moted, many invalided, but, alas, the rest were dead.
In H.M.'s ships' logs of those fatal years, '54 and '55,
the pathetic entries, " Departed this life ..."
and "Committed to the deep . . . . " occur
more than any others.

Doubtless the seamen considered themselves well
equipped with a change of clothing and twp blankets ;
and fully armed because they had their cutlasses ; while
those who also had pistols were ready for any number
of the enemy. When the weather became a " monkey
jacket colder " the men of the Naval Brigade were, for
a time, in good case, as they had fortunately been
allowed to bring their monkey jackets from the ships.

For the purposes of the siege, the Britannia, Albion,
Queen, Rodney, and Trafalgar, each supplied six
3 2 -pounders, and of her six-and-twenty guns the
Diamond yielded a score. Subsequently she was
moored in the harbour for hospital service. These
guns ^ere from 40 to 42 cwt. The Terrible s 68-
pounders weighed 95 cwt. ; four of them were landed ;
and also two Lancaster guns from the Beagle* All
this enormous weight of artillery, with the vast neces-
sary munitions, had to be dragged by sheer manual
force over the weary miles that separated Balaklava
from the positions for which they were destined.

The initiatory work of the Naval Brigade was a
tough undertaking, and had to be partly effected before
its camp was pitched near the Picquet House. The
Artillery could not help more than to lend some car-
riages for the 68-pounders, for they had their own
difficult tasks to fulfil. " We put fifty men on to drag-
ropes," tells Sir Evelyn Wood, "placed a fiddler or
fifer on the gun, and if neither was available, a tenor
was mounted to give the solo of a chorus song, and
thus we walked them up." Even the extra weight of
a musician might have been considered superfluous,

* " Life of Lord Lyons," page 229. — Captain Eardley-Wilmot, R.N.

i64 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 but Jack can usually be trusted for his own excellent
methods.

The fiddler, or fifer, or tenor would, doubtless, when
the strain of dragging became almost beyond even
combined physical strength, jump down to lend a hand
to the haulers. He would probably help with the
swearing also, for though, by reason of his art, the
nautical fiddler, fifer, or tenor might, if he had received
any of the sacred fire, appear to be an archangel in dis-
guise, was generally, after all, a creature subject to
inconsistency and graceless habit. Perhaps the Blue-
jacket found relief in his own half-humorous, half-
earnest garrulity, but the foolish element in it had to
to be ignored. The business in hand was too exacting
to allow of moral teaching ; and so the brave fellows
went swearing along, accomplishing their - gigantic
labours with a systematic promptitude, astonishing
even to those who commanded them.

In Lord Raglan's despatch to the Duke of New-
castle, dated the 3rd October, we find, with reference
to the landing and disposition of the respective armies,
the following: "This has necessarily been a slow
operation, both from the weight of the things to be
carried, and the scantiness of our means of transport,
but notwithstanding great progress has been made, and,
as usual, the Navy have rendered us the most powerful
and effective service.

"They also are landing guns from the ships of war
in compliance with my request, and I have every
reason to hope that their anxious desire to participate
in the attack of the place will be fully gratified.

" The position of the Allied Armies during the siege
has been definitely settled, the English Army occupy-
ing the ground to the right, and extending as far as the
crest of the hill which commands the valley of the
Inkerman with the head of the harbour and the bridge
communicating with the road into Sevastopol from the
Belbec, and having Balaklava in its rear.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 165

"The French will take their station on the same 1854
alignments to the left, resting on the sea, and holding in
their immediate rear one of the small bays between the
town and Cape Kersonesus ; and they have there found
the greatest facility in disembarking their siege train.
The British lines are already as near Sevastopol as is con-
sistent with the safety of the troops, and are occasion-
ally fired upon from the place, particularly when any
reconnaissance in advance is made, but hitherto no
casualty has arisen. The soil immediately before us is
extremely unfavourable for siege operations, being
merely a thin coating of earth upon rock, and rendering
entrenchments nearly impossible, and this may, I appre-
hend, add considerably to our difficulties."

A few days later (on the 8th), in another despatch,
Lord Raglan wrote :

"The Blue-jackets have, with the utmost cheerful-
ness and the most ardent zeal, applied themselves to
drag up the guns and ammunition, and to do whatever
was most conducive to the public service."

Rather to the south of a Posting House, where the
Light Division had placed a picquet, and thus given to
it the name Picquet House, the Naval Brigade pitched
its camp. It was close to the Woronzoff Road, at the
other side of which the Light Division was placed.
The 1st and 2nd Divisions were farther north, while
the 3rd and 4th Divisions were to the south-west.

Examination of the ground resulted in great dis-
appointment to the officers of Engineers, partly because
of the reasons stated by Lord Raglan, and also because
they found it would be extremely difficult to place the
necessary batteries in position to subdue the enemy's
fire. The ground was intersected by deep ravines, and
communication between the Divisions was rendered
hazardous by exposure to Russian fire.

The log of the Queen, in the early days of October,
tells that the armourers are making camp kettles for
the Naval Brigade, not to be of much comfort, we fear.

i66 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 seeing that the coffee dealt out was green, and soon
there was so great a dearth of fuel that roots had to be
dug up to provide it.

The fatal incompetency of those who were responsi-
ble for the well-being of all who took part in the cam-
paign, made the winter on the bleak upland of Crim
Tartary a period of terrible want, misery and disease.

Mr. Fielder, Commissary-General-in-Chief, had not
an adequate staff, and those he had were not efficient.
Before leaving England he had endeavoured to persuade
the Government to send out " ready-made " assistants
for his department, and, having had experience in the
Peninsula with Wellington, his advice should have
carried weight.

Sir Arthur Blackwood wrote what must have been
only too apparent: "They paid no attention to his
recommendation, and I should not wonder if the whole
thing go smash in consequence."

It is doubtful, however, whether ordinary routine
would have produced " ready-made " officials able to
cope with the emergencies of insufficient stores, and
supplies that were absolutely useless for the needs of
the troops.

Routine is productive of mechanical service, but if
the qualities necessary for controlling critical situations
really exist, great events evolve them. Mr. Fielder
had had more than incompetence to fight, for at Varna
fire had burnt his stores.

The clothing of the troops was in a wretched condi-
tion, when cholera again asserted itself and found many
a ready victim ; it spared neither officers nor men. On
the 4th Captain Joliffe, of the Coldstreams, died from
it, and many others were suffering.

Without deprecating the brilliant, though brief, ser-
vice in the late Soudan campaign, for which experience,
and repeated failure, had shown the way, it is obvious
how incomparably greater was the call for heroism in
the Crimea, where there was no organised land trans-

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 167

port from the base to the front, and where the supplies 1854
and munitions had for months to be dragged over
ground that, in addition to natural disadvantages, soon
became a succession of sloughs of mud, indescribably
foul and difficult.

After such a lapse of time it is almost impossible to rea-
lise the sufferings that were entailed, but to attribute them
to the " fortunes of war " is unreasonable, for our ships
had a free road to the ordnance wharf of Balaklava, and
yet any effort that was made, for a considerable period,
to lessen the colossal difficulties six or seven miles of
land could impose, failed" ignominiously. We " can
appreciate," as Mr. Steevens says, " an adequate
idea of the labour, promptness and system which
brought all the necessaries for 25,000 men from
Atbara, Merawi, Haifa, Egypt and England without a
break or hitch."*

And how significant the inference !

But now we must go up to the camp of the Naval
Brigade, with its Chaplain, who appears somewhat anx-
ious about his "parishioners," as he always affection-
ately called this land contingent from the Fleet.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

October loth, 1854.
I am just returned from the camp at Balaklava, fatigued
and worn out with heat and exertion. A post goes to-morrow
and I should write a few lines to acknowledge all the letters
I found waiting for me, and say how sorry I am to hear of
your illness. Please tell Helen and Carry that I cannot write
to-night, I am so tired, and I have four letters to get through
in Mrs. Buckley's business, and to decipher and answer an
epistle from the mother of one of our midshipmen, who is, I
believe, crazy.

I think I told you we had landed all the marines in the
Fleet, and 1,400 Blue-jackets, and one hundred guns. The

* The italics are added for the sake of contrast.

1 68 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 Blue-jackets are a brigade by themselves, and are accommo-
dated with tents and live just as soldiers do ; they are em-
ployed in landing the heavy guns and conveying them to the
dep6t, from whence they are carried to the front upon artillery
carriages. The work they have done is almost incredible.

I went to see after my parishioners, as there was a good
deal of sickness when they left us. I found them all very
flourishing, however, and stayed three days in the camp.
It is very rough work, and I am eaten up by fleas. Five
of us lived in one tent. We had each a blanket and a rug
for cover, and I used a carpet bag for a pillow. This, with
a good sprinkling of hay, made us all very comfortable,
except when the fleas began to move in the hay. At night
it was very cold, for occasionally the rain came through
and saturated our blankets. At four in the morning all
turned out, and those who had time adjourned to a neigh-
bouring ditch, which, we believe, contained running water.
Here ablutions were hastily performed, and then we re-
turned to breakfast. I must confess that, being up to your
middle in a ditch on a cold October morning in the Crimea,
with no light to curl your whiskers by except the stars, and
nothing to hear but the song of the grasshoppers or the bark-
ing of jackals, is not quite so pleasant as a good dressing-room
and a fire, after daybreak instead of before. Our breakfast
consisted of a cup of tea (if the kettle did not fall off the fire)
and a slice of pork and ship's biscuit. Then a pipe prepared
us for the day. If ever I hear anyone object to smoking
again, I shall box his ears. When all other comforts are
thrown aside, and scarcely the necessaries of life to be
obtained, a pipe of tobacco is undeniably " fit for the gods."
At six o'clock the camp was cleared, and all went to work till
middle day, when an hour's intermission was given ; then at
work again till sunset. I employed myself in visiting the sick,
of whom there are large numbers at the Military Hospital ; in
encouraging the men ; in cooking the dinner ; in writing
general orders for our commander, who is " Major of Brigade,"
and in writing letters for the men ; in fact, making myself
generally useful.

The second day of my visit I went to the front, which is as
much as eight miles from Balaklava, and took my seat on an
eminence about two miles from Sevastopol ; there I had a
famous view, and feasted my eyes with a sight of the Russian's
enormous and fearful batteries. They fired a shell at a picket
behind me, which burst one hundred yards in front, sufficiently

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 169

near to be interesting and sufficiently far to be pleasant. I 1854
don't care much for an intimate acquaintance with shot and
shell, having no promotion to earn. Strong reinforcements
are coming in to the Russians, and we must do the business
quickly or not at all this year. It is said that we go into action
on Monday, and the line-of-battle ships and the army are to
make a simultaneous attack. Balaklava is a singularly narrow
harbour, but of great depth of water, and can contain many
ships. I saw John Adye, who was very well.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

October 12th, 1854.

I am again laid up with a bad attack of low fever and
influenza, and cannot help congratulating myself that I am
under blankets and between sheets, instead of having my
miseries aggravated by tormenting " whisks " of hay and
irritating bites of fleas upon the heights of Sevastopol. This
little illness has delayed my departure for the camp, and I shall
now remain behind until after Sunday, when I hope to be able
to take my own duty. With much to be thankful for, I find
myself almost wishing that I had a better excuse than this
attack for remaining in bed, since it prevents me visiting my
own sick here, and also devoting myself to the severer duties of
giving help to the Amazonian sister of the healing art —
military surgery upon the field. We have a good deal of
fever of typhus type in the ship, although I am happy to say
cholera has degenerated into cholerine. One of our men has
recovered from a bad attack of cholera, and the shock to his
system has been so great that he is completely "struck
comical," as the sailors accurately express it ; his mind is
filled with the strangest and most extraordinary fancies, to the
utter derangement of his usual mode of thought. He insists
upon my conferring with him three or four times a day upon
the best means of stopping the war. I am, however, now
unable to go to him. The weather is one day very hot, and
the following alternates to cold, rain and wind. From 74" to
30° are the usual variations of the thermometer. You may
imagine what effect this must have upon many of us, the
French especially, who are not accustomed to the alternating
variations of our more northern climate. The constant suc-
cession of heat and cold, snow and brilliant sunshine, rain and

I70 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 drought which we experience at home, accustoms Englishmen
to the changes they meet elsewhere.

There is no great news from the camp. We are getting our
guns into position as fast as we can, but as yet none have
answered the heavy cannonade which has been made upon our
lines day and night. I am only afraid that, with such prac-
tice, the Russians, who are indifferent artillerymen, will become
expert. Yesterday two of our transports got in shore, and the
forts of Sevastopol opened one hundred and fifty guns upon
the devoted craft ; one escaped and the other was stranded,
as the crew deserted her at once. I do not know what our
merchants will do, if this war continues ; they have now a bad
set of men in many of their ships, dirty, self-indulgent and
regular " sea lawyers," ever a plague on board a man-of-war.
To which stock of qualities must be added another, viz. : —
many are deficient in that courage and determination which
generally distinguishes a seaman who has been, man and boy,
bred to the Service.

Our Blue-jackets are working very hard at the camp. We
daily expect them tO' commence operations, but are quite
satisfied with the delay, for unless every preparation is made
with the calmest forethought and care, all our pains will be
thrown away. The strength of Sevastopol has not been ex-
aggerated. It has now a capable general directing operations
(Luders) ; a large force is known to be at no great distance ;
and reinforcements are daily pouring in. The Fleet cannot
assist with any prospect of benefit, since shoal water prevents
our near approach. The hopes of the Allies must be in the
superior spirit, courage, intelligence and skill of our troops.
All will be risked upon a single die, but there is no want of
confidence felt in the result.

<;
o

w
Q

171

CHAPTER XV.

In the beginning of October, 1854, a strong conviction
existed among the chiefs of the Engineers, and at the
French Headquarters that no assault of Sevastopol
should be attempted till the fire of the enemy had been
overcome by siege guns. General Canrobert, who had
succeeded Marshal St. Arnaud, expressed a grave
dread that Prince Mentschikofif would take advantage
of premature action to bring his field army into
operation against the vulnerable positions of the Allies.

Although they had to face an impregnable and
extended line of defences, barring their inroad to the
town, happily more than half the land on which they
had established themselves had a seaboard. There
was also a natural parapet against an advance from the
east in the Sapune Ridge, though, in the north-east,
where it declined towards the Inkerman Valley, their
position was weak and assailable, as was soon to be
proved. It was here the notable Sandbag Battery was
planted, but, with a diminishing army and the necessity
for urgency in the preparations for the siege, sufficient
infantry could not be spared for its investment.

The heights occupied by the invading armies were
intersected by ravines which, though they made
communication difficult, could have been well garri-
soned by an adequate number of troops, and the
ensuing disastrous encounters might thus have been
prevented.

On the 5th instant some tents arrived, but already
the men had slept two wet nights in the open.

172 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 Lord Raglan established his Headquarters four and
a half miles from Balaklava, and from the high ground
close by, Sevastopol could be distinctly seen.

The one boon the enemy desired was time. In
sickening fear he was looking for the arrival of
reinforcements by the northern entrance to the town,
which was still clear ; and time he knew would bring
them. With unflinching energy he toiled day and
night to strengthen his fortifications and to connect
them by gigantic earthworks, and all he needed was
time to complete them. And only time could yield up
to him the secret intentions of the Allies, and enable
him to increase his batteries and rifle pits in places
where he could bring his heaviest fire to bear on their
proposed constructions.

Admiral Korniloff and de Todleben made the most
of the freely offered boon, and, with amazing quick-
ness, completed various operations imperative in a
beleaguered city. They improved and developed
their entrenchments ; strengthened the whole of the
line fronting the Allies ; and converted the warships
in the harbour into floating batteries.

From the coast to the River Tchernaya, and even
beyond where the Sapund Ridge turns south-west, the
invaders considered their position tolerably safe. War-
ships guarded the entrance to the harbour of Balak-
lava, so that their base was securely protected
seawards ; and the ships conveying supplies had no
blockade to defy to gain their destination. Till the
end of the war these waters were as full of every kind
of vessel, with bustle and movement coming and
going, as if Balaklava had been a great mercantile
port ; and the perpetual activity on the wharf was also
a feature of resemblance to a trafficking centre. But,
notwithstanding the enormous sums which the Trans-
port service cost, our troops were dying of cholera and
fever, for lack of suitable provisions for their needs.

The Allies being minded to first construct batteries

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 173

that would command the Redan and Flagstafif Bastion, 1854
and their advanced posts having no shelter from the
Russian guns, trenches now became an essential part of
the works.

The disposition of the guns was of vital importance,
and so carefully were the preparations executed, that
the enemy was ignorant of the placing of some of the
pieces which were destined to cause him terrible loss.
The Russian fire was now irritating the troops at the
front, shot and shell being sent over incessantly ; this
artillery practice was very disturbing, though it effected
little, and drew no response from the British, for the
Commander-in-Chief was averse to desultory firing.
Munitions were not too plentiful, and there was other
sterner work on hand.

Since becoming acquainted with the character of the
ground. Sir John Burgoyne was less sanguine, for the
engineers were baffled by the rock masses which met
their attempts to find earth for their purposes. Two of
the principal batteries were, however, planted about
1,400 yards from the Redan, between ravines that
reached down to the harbour ; on the Woronzoff height
was the British Right Attack, and there Gordon's
Battery (26 guns) was placed. Between the Woron-
zoff Ravine and the fitly-named Valley of the Shadow
of Death, where corpses and cannon ball were the most
familiar obstruction to the passer by, on Green Hill,
was the Left Attack, where Chapman's Battery
mounted forty-one guns. The Right Lancaster
Battery, a short distance to the north east, placed 2,500
yards from the enemy's lines, was furnished with six
guns, five being Lancasters, whose long range, it was
expected, would reach the ships in the harbour. There
was also a battery with one gun in the rear of the Right
Attack, called the Left Lancaster Battery. The
Naval Brigade worked vigorously aiding the com-
pletion of these erections.

Some of the Terrible s guns were placed in the

174 FHOM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 French lines to be worked by British seamen. History-
does not furnish any record of Jack's impressions of
the surroundings in which he then found himself, and
even conjecture might be at fault ; but the proximity
of two such opposite types suggests curiosity about the
humorous tales that would afterwards be related by
those who survived to return to their comrades in the
ships.

To estimate correctly the work which was under-
taken on land by the Fleet, it may be stated of the 126
pieces in battery, 'jTy were English, and 29 of these guns
were manned by sailors.

Our Ally determined to direct his cannonade against
the Flagstaff Bastion, and, with great discernment, fixed
upon Mount Rodolph (which was only 1,000 yards
from the Central Bastion) whereon to erect his batteries,
and was fortunate in finding sufficient earth there for
the purpose. General Lburmel established himself
with nine battalions under the crest of this mount.* It
was hoped that the bombardment would at least make
such an opening in the enemy's entrenchments as
would enable the Allies to push on with the assault,
which, it was proposed, should immediately follow.

The 4th Dragoons and the nth Hussars were sent
down to the camp near Balaklava on October 14th
under Lord Cardigan.f A commissariat search expe-
dition, consisting of five British and four French ships,
was ordered to Yalta for the purpose of finding a
reasonable market for the purchase of provisions, but
was not successful.

It was frequently remarked how much more clever
the sailors were in convenient devices than the troops.
British soldiers are generally indifferent to creature
comforts in a campaign, but even the Turks, now

* " Invasion of the Crimea," page 309, vol. III. — Kinglake.

t "Old Evans" (Sir de Lacy Evans, who commanded the Second Division)
"made a strong push to keep us, but I fancy Lord Raglan is apprehensive
of this post." — Page 58, Diary, October, 1854. — Lord George Paget.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 175

landing in great numbers, though not Omar Pacha's 1854
tried veterans in the Crimea, were more resourceful
than they. In their trench work " they made much
snugger places for themselves, scooping out the earth
and fencing the hole with boughs, than the English
would have thought of doing ; * and the Osmanli piped
wild barbaric music all day, and nightly ended the
strains with loyal and fervent cheers for his most sacred
majesty, Abdul Medjid Khan.

The British soldiers had to prepare their own food.
The Turk at first had none to prepare ; the French
system of a cook for each mess of twelve or more was
certainly the better arrangement.

There was no music at this time in the British lines ;
all the bandsmen were kept at more laborious duty.
Our gay Ally, on the contrary, was not disposed to
forego his bugles and his drums : perhaps he was right.
With sickness rife in the camps, men needed all the
cheer that could be given, and soon they would require
even stronger persuasion to induce hope, than trumpet-
sounding or any other martial strain.

Regiments were frequently roused up from sleep.
" We are now regularly turned out about midnight,"
wrote Lord George Paget, ... " but we always
turn in again in half an hour. Every fool at the out-
posts, who fancies he hears something, has only to
make a row, and there we all are. Generals and all."t
A determined sortie was made by the Russians on
October 12th, which was resisted by the 2nd and Light
Divisions with field guns ; but the line of entrenchment
in construction was not disturbed.

Lancaster guns, howitzers and mortars had been
placed wherever it was judged they would do deadliest
work on the Russian fortifications, which had been well
strengthened to withstand attack.

Sevastopol was completely garrisoned by the 17th.

* " The War," page 211.— W. H. Russell.

t "Journal of the Crimean War," page 57.— Gen. Lord George Paget, K.C.B.

176 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 Troops from Bessarabia were also arriving, and, now
that the artillery of the Allies was within firing distance
of their goal, Europe waited impatiently for the end.

It was considered that it would be a waste of powder
if the bombardment did not include a combined attack
from the French and English Batteries simultaneously
delivered with the guns of the ships ; and Admiral
Dundas concurred in this proposal. But shoal water,
sunken ships, and stone forts had still to be reckoned
with ; and they were mighty factors on the side of the
enemy, rendering a great naval victory almost imprac-
ticable.

When the general cannonading of the sea forts was
decided upon. Sir Edmund Lyons was permitted to
take the Agamemnon out of Balaklava Harbour. He
joined the Fleets under Admirals Dundas and Hamelin
at the Katcha, who were there preparing for the attack.

The British Fleet was not satisfied with the position
assigned to it. Some regarded the arrangement as
giving our ships no chance of distinguishing themselves,
while it was obvious they would have chance enough
of receiving a raking Russian fire. All experienced
navigators are aware that the soundings on one side
of the ship may differ 2 or 3 feet from those on the
other side, and that even a foot less water will, in
certain conditions, be hazardous to the safety of a
vessel. Our Ally preferred not to risk the shoal
extending from Point Constantine, and well might our
Admirals and Captains feel aggrieved that their ships
were to be exposed to the fire of forts out of the reach
of their guns. The Frenchman has rarely a moment's
hesitation in any emergency of daily life about the best
possible good obtainable for himself. The history of
the campaign proved this individual trait to dominate
the race collectively. Our Ally took in every condition
at a glance, and, even on the sea, determined to secure
the position which of right belonged to the greater
Naval Power. Close range to the North of the Road-

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 177

stead was absolutely dangerous, and the instructions 1854
issued by Admiral Dundas contained the following : —
" So much must depend on weather, currents, etc.,
that it is not possible to direct whether an anchor is to
be let go from forward or aft, or even at all."

The supply of munitions to the ships being limited,
it had been arranged that half was to be used at the
time of the land bombardment, and the other half when
the fire from the trenches had ended, which would
indicate to the Fleets the moment when the assault was
to begin.* It was presumed that the land defence
would be weakened by the necessary diversion of
returning the fire of the ships from the forts, and thus
the assault could be more easily effected.

Though the men were in high spirits because action
was imminent, the Admirals and Captains were annoyed
that the place of honour had been relegated to our Ally
— by himself

And on the 1 7th before daybreak the attack began.
In the town Admiral Korniloff rode from bastion to
bastion regardless of the terrible fire which was doing
stern work among the ranks around him. His presence
prevented the panic which would in no small degree
have helped the Allies. But his enthusiastic devotion
ended his career. Careless for his own safety, and
eager about the defence, in an exposed moment a round
shot directed towards the Malakoff, shattered the body
of this brave servant of the Tsar.

The letters give the sequel to certain ambitious but
problematical designs ; while the log of the Queen
contains a long list of the casualties which occurred
to her during the bombardment. The writer's health
at this time was not good ; notwithstanding the regular
fumigation (of which the Queens log also tells) with
the primitive disinfectant, boiling vinegar, the chaplain
remarks very frequently : " We are still sick on board
this ship."

* " Invasion of the Crimea," page 328, vol. iii. — Kinglake.

178 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

1 8th October, 1854.

We fought a long action yesterday oi zYt. hours against the
forts of Sevastopol, the army likewise attacking it on the land
side, but I have not time to let you know particulars, as the
mail leaves with just half an hour given us to write to our
friends and say that we are safe.

We in the Fleet got pummelled exceedingly, but the army
escaped, we hear, with very little loss. The place is, I fear,
quite impracticable. We in the Queen alone fired 5,000 shot
and shell from her broadsides, but I do not suspect five men
were killed on the Russian side, or a single stone dislodged.
It is a fact, that with all our expenditure of men and ammuni-
tion, not a fort was silenced. The reason of this is, we cannot
get in close enough for the shoals, and the Russians fire shell
and red hot shot with impunity.

I was on deck a good deal from time to time ; for two hours
our only casualty was one of the quartermasters, whose leg
was shot off by a shell close above the ankle, or rather it was
smashed to a pulp, and we were obliged to take it off. I was
on the poop at the time when the shot crashed through the
side. He bore the operation very well, and would not take
chloroform. We were struck many times and had but one
killed and seven badly wounded. One shell came into the
cockpit, burst at some distance from us, and blew our candles
out. We were at last obliged to haul out of action, having
been set on fire by red-hot shot. Altogether, in the three
Fleets, there were 29 killed and 167 wounded. The Turks
fought well, but stupidly. They kept no order, and got into
our way all through the day ; but they fired their broadsides
beautifully. Some officers have been killed. Love to all.

P.S. — John Adye was safe yesterday. He is Major now.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

18th October, 1854.
I have a few minutes to spare to give you hurried in-
telligence of our having fought a long action yesterday, with

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 179

loss on our side to both ships and men, and, I fear, to no 1854
great advantage, as we could not get sufficiently near to
breach the enormous walls nor to dismount the guns. The
Queen led into action, but we did not fire until the enemy's
shot were flying thick and fast around us. I had no idea
of the power of heavy shot until I had seen it with my
own eyes.

My Hungarian friend, Mr. Eber, came to visit me the
second time the day before yesterday. He was on deck all
day, and I ran up to join him whenever I could leave helping
the doctors to dress the wounded. My nerves were the only
ones in the cockpit which served their masters at a pinch,
except, of course, the doctors'. We had one case of amputa-
tion. I saw a good many at Alma, and could do it myself if
forced. It is a simple matter, all but tying the arteries, and
these are difficult to find in the midst of spurting blood and
raw flesh. One of my prot^g^s, a midshipman, was knocked
and cut in the hand, and — I won't say where — as he lay on
the ground. I tell him it was an excellent thing for him, and
the splinter was a very discriminating one !

I have just received my Mother's note, and cannot stop to
answer it, as a ship goes directly. I send a list of killed and
wounded, as far as can be ascertained. You may publish it.
Mr. Eber is correspondent for the Times. He is now writing
by my side, and you will see an account of the affair from
his pen.

I think to-morrow we shall go in again.

Vengeance, 2 wounded.
Trafalgar, 2 wounded.
Rodney, 2 wounded.

Firebrand, Captain Stewart (slightly) and 2 wounded.
London, 4 killed, 18 wounded.
Terrible, i killed, 8 wounded.

Triton, Commander Lloyd dangerously (since dead), 24
others.

Spkynx, i drowned by the swamping of a boat.

Sampson, i killed.

Britannia, 8 wounded.

Arethusa, 4 killed, 14 wounded.

Niger, i killed, 4 wounded.

Furious, 4 wounded.

Queen, i killed, 7 wounded.

Cyclops, Lieut. Purvis and Mr. Forster slightly.

i8o FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 Spiteful, Mr. Baillie and another officer and 2 seamen
severely by shell.

Agamemnon, 2 officers wounded, 20 seamen ditto, 4 killed.

Sanspareil, Lieut. Madden killed, 10 seamen killed, 60
seamen wounded.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

2ist October, 1854.
We have heard little of the result of our doings on Tuesday
last. It seems that our shot told upon the surface of the
stone walls, and here and there knocked two embrasures
into one. The ground is covered with splinters and that
is all. We have lost many valuable lives, and several gallant
ships are altogether disabled. The Albion and Sanspareil
were riddled with shot, and the Rear-Admiral said on his
quarter-deck that he should never get out of the fight alive.
Just in the thick of the fire we stood in and drew it off
from the brave Lyons. It was the admiration of all who
could see it ; imagine a large three decker like ourselves,
standing inside all other ships into less than six fathoms of
water, and opening broadsides with admirable precision.
Had we not been set on fire by red-hot shot, and been
obliged to haul out of action, we should have demolished the
battery in a quarter of an hour, although at heavy loss to
ourselves. The several times I was on deck, the enemy's
shot was falling like rain through our rigging, and rockets
and bar shot cutting away the backstays and braces in great
numbers. To this exceeding elevation of the Russian guns
we may, under God, attribute the little loss we suffered. Only
13 shots struck us, although as many hundreds passed
through the rigging. Everyone says it was an ill-judged
affair, especially as we shall have to go in on the day of
general assault. We must take Sevastopol, cost what it
may, probably at the loss of ships. There is no news from
the army, except that the place is impregnable by cannonade,
and all are anxious for a general assault. We see a good
many explosions in the lines, I suppose French batteries
blowing up. One of our officers has just returned, with
the loss of an eye. He brings no news, having been on
the sick list since Wednesday last. The French are all
quarrelling amongst themselves, which retards operations very
considerably.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. i8i

I hope you are all well. I am getting better, but am troubled 1854
with weakness and sore throat, and bleeding at the nose.
The climate does not agree with me, but there is not much
the matter. Kindest love to all.

TO HIS SISTER.

H.M.S. Queen,

22nd October, 1854.
I wish to write a few lines to you before going to bed,
although all the little news I have been able to gather was
sent home yesterday.

* « * * »

Since Monday last, I have had a visit from my Hungarian
friend, Eber, who is of some literary celebrity in London,
and is one of the writers in the Edinburgh Review ; he has a
military name too, having been a general in the Hungarian
war. He is a tall, distinguished looking man of about
30 years of age, and is now a correspondent of the Times,
for which he tells me they give him ;£' 1,000 a year, besides
paying every expense. He mentioned this as an inducement
to me to allow him to bear his own expenses when visiting
me. This, I must confess, has heightened the pleasure of
his stay with me ! He is an excellent linguist, having been
trained as an Austrian diplomatist ; they are " picked men "
in that country, not, as among ourselves, young fellows who
spend a few years at foreign courts, and so qualify for
ambassadors, getting their education upon the "hook or by
crook" system. As a writer, his essays in the Edinburgh
show a great mastery and power over the English tongue.
He was also the writer of the letters in the Times upon the
Greek disturbances, and very excellent they were. Not very
light and airy, it is true, but historic, philosophical, and full
of good practical thought.

We have but scanty news from the camp since I wrote
yesterday. We hear that the Russians are becoming greatly
demoralized, and require force to keep them at their guns.
This may, or may not be, true. I believe an important fort
was taken yesterday. The Russian loss is stated to be
nearly 1,000 a day, whereas in the English camp 50 killed
and 300 wounded is all we have as yet suffered. Thank God
for it.

Ever yours.

1 82 FROM THE FLEET JN THE FIFTIES.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
Katcha River,

27th Oct., 1854.

I am getting along, but am not well. I dread the winter
here, being even now a sufferer. But I must take my chance
with many better men. You ask me what my doctor says of
me. Naval medical men are not much in the habit of con-
ferring with their patients, except when absolutely necessary,
and so I really do not know. I have, in fact, never consulted
the surgeon, an old " Scotch body," who dislikes medical prac-
tice and, I believe, hates patients. I go to the senior assistant
when I want medicine ; he thinks I have a bad cold, which is
getting better ; that is also my opinion. You know I never
look ill, and naval doctors are not paid for showing sympathy
If I like to go on the sick list, they are too polite to refuse an
officer, and then I can obtain what medicine I ask for, if it be
only moderately noxious, and not absolutely poisonous. I did
hear the assistant surgeon say I wanted some bracing exercise
at home, but as that is out of the question, his prescription is
valueless. There is after all no great cause for anxiety that I
know of. Want of exercise is the evil, and cold (as well as
excessive heat), affects me a good deal.

When the ships in the dark moved to their anchorage
on the evening of the 1 7th, men were grimly conscious
that the attack had not been successful. It was galling
for the naval commanders to face this deplorable fact,
and especially for those of the Agamemnon, Sanspareil,
London, Queen, Albion and Triton, as well as others,
whose vessels had grievously suffered from the enemy's
fire, to have to acknowledge the paucity of advan-
tageous result. Their regret was mingled with no little
envy of the French position, where deep water had
made close range practicable, though proximity had not

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 183

been attempted. The silencing of the upper tier 1854
batteries of Fort Constantine was bought at far too
dear a price — loss of life, disabling of ships, and the
useless expenditure of munitions for eleven hundred
pieces of artillery. A naval demonstration, which
included great risk and effected little save the alarm of
the inhabitants of Sevastopol, while it lasted, was not
the kind of engagement to inspire the British Fleet
with satisfaction.

It is probable that a slight diversion from the land
operations had been made, but the town by this time
was so well garrisoned that the defence of the besieged
was of no uncertain quality.

Notwithstanding that on the i6th bets had been
freely offered in the camp of the Naval Brigade that
the city would fall in twenty-four hours,* the impression
being general that the fire of the Allies could not be
withstood, the enemy had obstinately resisted the com-
bined attack. His fire had been hottest upon Mount
Rudolph, where explosions in the magazines of the
French silenced their batteries early in the day ; but
the British continued cannonading, hour after hour,
directing their fire from Chapman's and Gordon's
batteries, against the Flagstaff bastion and the Redan.
The artillery brought to bear on the latter had caused
an explosion of a powder magazine in the salient, which
resulted in havoc and consternation. Some of the
guns of the Malakoff were also dismounted, and shells
which missed the earthworks, generally reached the
open parts of the town, where many were passing to
and fro. Although gunners were killed at their posts,
others quickly replaced them, for the Muscovite soldier
is no coward, and our forces were beginning to find, to
their cost, that in Sevastopol he did not belie his
historic character. The French were not able to
resume offensive operations on the i8th, as it was
considered by their commanders that increased pre-

* " Crimea in 1854 and 1894," page 88. — General Sir Evelyn Wood, V.C.

1 84 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 parations were absolutely necessary, but the British
cannonade was continued day after day till the 25th.
The enemy suffered gt-eater loss than the Allies, yet
their vigorous fire was ceaseless during the day, and by
night their ramparts were repaired in an almost
miraculous manner, the ruins being rapidly replaced by
formidable earthworks. The Naval Brigade lost Lieu-
tenant Greathead on the 18th. From chief downwards,
rough heroic work was performed by this arm of the
Service. There was difficulty in the practice of the
Lancaster guns, and one unfortunately burst, but the
Blue-jackets remained undismayed. When the horses
would not face the fire, volunteers dragged the ammu-
nition wagon to its destination, but, ere the powder was
removed into the magazine, a shell dropped upon it.
The sailors were still close by, and Captain Peel, too,
was there. Quick to recognise the danger, without
hesitating a moment, he sprang forward, and taking the
deadly thing up, flung it right over the parapet, where
it immediately burst, fortunately harming no one.

And if esprit de corps were not a characteristic of
the Naval Brigade, its lack could not be laid to the
charge of this brave and daring leader, who, dreading
lest his Blue-jackets might experience any lapse of that
zealous valour of which he, as well as their chaplain,
was justly proud, begged four of his brother officers to
" set the fashion in the battery of always walking erect
without undue haste." *

Admiral Dundas's despatch of the 23rd October tells
of an addition to the Naval Brigade of four hundred
and ten men.

To increase the prospective hostilities which, at this
time, threatened the Allies, they became aware that a
great Russian force of all arms was assembling at
Tchorgoun under Liprandi.

The cannonading upon Sevastopol went on, and was
stoutly answered ; even though the enemy was con-

* " Crimea in 1854 and 1894," page 97. — General Sir Evelyn Wood.

CAPTAIN PEEL, R.N.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 185

tinually engaged strengthening his line of defence in 1854
places which had proved vulnerable. De Todleben
and his engineers were also devotedly endeavouring to
frustrate the progress of advanced parties constructing
approaches. Our brave fellows were incessantly sub-
jected to a pitiless fire, but, notwithstanding the fact
that the French and British were gaining closer, disease
and Russian mitrail were rapidly diminishing the
number of the Allied troops in condition to bear arms.

Lord Raglan had been apprehensive of the defences
of Balaklava before he heard the rumours of Liprandi's
intentions ; and it must have been obvious to all con-
cerned that great advantage would be gained to the
Russians if the British base could be cut off. Its pro-
tection was a mere makeshift, because nothing better
was practicable.

The natural formation of the ground offered consider-
able security, and the Commander-in-Chief had not
been disposed to sacrifice, from the imperative business
of the siege, a single company more than seemed abso-
lutely necessary.

The inner line was held by Sir Colin Campbell and
his 93rd Highlanders, with the marines, " a superb
corps — all the men being broad shouldered, straight
limbed, and above the average height of our infantry."

The outer line of defence, extending nearly a couple
of miles, was entrusted to two battalions of inex-
perienced Turkish recruits, whose redoubts were not
near enough to each other to be mutually supporting,
and contained only nine and twelve-pounders. This
position could only have been securely held by ten
times the number of troops employed. The lesson of
Silistria, too, had been forgotten, or did not now serve,
for here the Osmanli had not, as there, British captains
of undoubted skill and deathless courage, to inspire and
to lead them.

In the attack of the Russian squadrons on the 25th
October, the Turks, feeling they were in isolated small

i86 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 bodies of troops, overmatched by tremendous numbers,
gave themselves up to panic. Sir Colin Campbell's
despatch, however, contains the significant testimony
that "the Turks resisted as long as they could " ; but
after witnessing the terrible slaughter of their country-
men in the redoubt on Canrobert's Hill, and not being
rallied by British officers, a stampede was inevitable.
It would seem as if the stars in their courses fought
against the Allies all that memorable day.

The Infantry had had their chance at Alma, and it
had not been missed ; and now, in deadly earnest, the
Heavy and Light Brigades were to show their gallant
mettle was equal to the sorriest opportunities that an
evil fate could devise.

Many great authorities on strategy have held that
cavalry should be used sparingly, and the records of
famous military achievements show that this wise rule
has been followed with advantage. At Balaklava it
was otherwise. Absolutely regardless of consequences,
our brigades spent themselves, riding in a keen brave
spirit, while recognising the palpable close prospect of
death as their only reasonable goal.

The following chapter contains an account, from a
military point of view, of the never-to-be-forgotten
battle of Balaklava. I am indebted for these reminis-
cences to one who himself took no mean part in the
action, which our chaplain graphically described as a
great body of splendid horsemen scampering down ;
then two or three struggling back, while riderless steeds
stray hither and thither as if, in their dismay, they were
seeking for the voice or touch of masters who would
never guide them more.

i87

CHAPTER XVI.

MR. w. H. Pennington's narrative.

" With the scanty knowledge of the facts known, at 1854
the time immediately succeeding the event, one migh
well have despaired of arriving at a just conclusion,
regarding upon whose shoulders should be laid the
weight of responsibility in the misjudgment and imbe-
cility which sent a skeleton brigade, numbering only
six hundred and seven sabres, down a valley some mile
and a half in length, under a withering front and flank
fire, without supports, to confront a well-disciplined
army in a well-chosen position !

The published minutes of the commission of enquiry
which sat after the war, only added to the mystery
which enshrouded the criminal blunder, and resulted in
nothing more than a "confusion worse confounded."
It may have been necessary to have yielded to the public
outcry for an investigation, yet impolitic to have arrived
at a definite conclusion. But those who could have
cleared up much which was then obscure, and recon-
ciled the astonishing conflict of evidence, were never
under examination.

Lord Raglan's intention cannot be doubted for a
moment when he entrusted the fiery Nolan with his
instructions to Lord Lucan, commanding the cavalry
division. This gallant aide-de-camp had conceived the
highest opinion of the capacity and possibilities of
cavalry. He had written a book in which his con-

i88 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 ception was set forth in the most stirring and compen-
dious fashion : and it is a matter of general knowledge
that he bewailed the fact that the cavalry had not had
the opportunity of demonstrating in practice the value
and veracity of his theories by some achievement at
once brilliant and startling in its character. But all
this was wide of the mark ; for our handful of cavalry
had done yeoman's service, if not of an especially showy
kind.

The Light Brigade had protected the left flank of
the British against all possibility of turning it at the
battle of the Alma, and were of infinite service in the
detour which was made when the Russians were sur-
prised at Mackenzie's Farm. We know the love some
of our brave Irish comrades display for theatrical
effect ; and the gallant captain would seem to have
found all interest lacking in the great drama of war, so
far as the cavalry were concerned, and to have been
longing for some sensational action which should rival
the boldest performances of the infantry. But we shall
see presently what observations he addressed to Lord
Lucan. I must come to the initial incident which gave
stern intimation of the serious designs of Liprandi's
army at daybreak on the never-to-be-forgotten 25 th
October, 1854.

The early morning muster, at an hour preceding
daybreak, of the brigades of cavalry, upon the plain
and in the chill air, always had an effect at once gloomy
and impressive. It is within the experience of us all,
that there is usually no time at which the pulse of
nature beats so faintly and inarticulately ; and it is
even so with the pulsations of human life. There is a
depression, often indescribable, in the suspension of an
active vitality, affecting both mind and body, to which
almost any state or condition is preferable ; and so far
as I can recall the occasion, I was specially conscious
of it upon the early morning of that exciting and
eventful day : but perhaps this unusual depression may

FROM TJTE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 189

have been the result of a mysterious premonition of its 1854
coming fatalities. We had turned out morning after
morning, and had generally retired to our respective
lines when the sun was well above the horizon, without
any incident of a startling kind. We were about to do
so on the morning of the 25th (and quite ready to par-
take of our rough meal, and were, indeed, mounted for
that purpose), when the silence was broken by a sound
too ominous to be mistaken. It was the distant boom
of a big gun, repeated at slight intervals. Something
serious was now impending. Our outlying picquet at
Kamara driven in, signalled the approach of the enemy
in force, with cavalry, infantry, and artillery. . He was
advancing from the Tchernaya, having crossed the
Traktir Bridge, and also from the hills of Kamara.
He drew nearer, and his first point of attack was
Canrobert's Hill (No. i Redoubt). His guns were
admirably served, silencing the fire of the Turks,
which was by no means effective ; and some gaps
were made by his artillery in the ranks of the Heavy
Brigade, who were dismounted and "standing to their
horses" in rear of the redoubt, but ready upon the
ifMitant to resume their saddles. Our Ottoman Allies,
it has been alleged, retired without spiking the guns ;
but they made a show of resistance, for many were
killed and badly wounded, but I saw some of them
making every effort to escape with "bag and baggage,"
madly rushing through our intervals in the direction of
the harbour, crying for " Ships ! Ships!" There was
every excuse for their feeble stand : they were over-
whelmed by numbers. The redoubts were therefore
carried without the enemy receiving a check ; and he
occupied them to our detriment, when, later in the day,
he turned our own guns upon us. The brigades of
cavalry were now retired out of range, and the enemy
for a time made no further demonstration.

To oppose the Russians, we had only the cavalry
brigades (weak as to numbers), a battery or troop of

190 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 Horse Artillery, and the 93rd Highlanders, who were
posted at the foot of the Marine Heights. Our situa-
tion was certainly critical. Now the day was wearing
on, and the enemy, emboldened by his good fortune in
the capture of the redoubts, advanced his numerous
cavalry in the direction of Balaklava, probably with the
intention of holding the approach until his possession
of the village might become confirmed by the presence
of his strong battalions of infantry. But the Muscovite
was not destined to meet with unvarying success.
Hidden behind the crest of the hillock, the Highlanders,
who had been reclining and waiting to surprise him,
sprang to their feet and coolly received him in line with
such well-directed volleys, that, suffering considerable
loss, and leaving many dead and wounded to attest it,
he reeled back ; then as if ashamed to desist from all
purpose, changed his direction, thus confronting the
splendid regiments of our Heavy Brigades.

The enemy halted. Three thousand, or two thou-
sand nine hundred strong, his columns were far too
close and dense ; and possibly to this cause may be
attributed the fact, that the Russian cavalry had but
scant opportunity for using their sabres freely from-the
shoulder.

The Heavy Brigade, eager for the meUe, put all
possible speed into their chargers ; and only two deep,
led by General Scarlett and his aides, dashed forward,
and plunged into the surprised and immobile ranks
of the enemy. Few indeed, but stout of purpose, our
Heavies, though immensely outnumbered, fought as
only men could fight, who served their Sovereign of
their own will ; and who, associated with their
comrades during long years of service, had cultivated
an esprit de corps, which the later conditions of our
Army are but ill calculated to foster. The " rank and
file " of the British cavalry has always consisted of a
very large percentage of men of a class vastly superior
to " the horse " of any other European army ; men,

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 191

with rare exceptions, filled with a true sense of military 1854
obligation ; and having among them many gentlemen
of honourable if broken fortunes, upheld by a spirit of
the most unbounded patriotism. There were only
some three hundred of these splendid horsemen really
brought into collision with the Muscovite cavalry at the
first shock, comprising squadrons of "The Greys"
and " Inniskillings," whose success was presently
confirmed by the ist, or Royal Dragoons, the 5th
Green Horse (so called from the colour of their
facings), and the 4th Royal Irish Dragoon Guards,
who fell upon the overlapping wings of the enemy
when their centre was wavering from the vigorous
onset of the two first-mentioned regiments of our
" Heavies." But the infinitely superior physique of
our men, the weight of their horses, and their deter-
mination to sustain and add to the glorious traditions
of their regiments, made them, indeed, irresistible. So
few were they in comparison to the enemy, that, as the
ranks intermingled, it appeared impossible that they
should prevail. It seemed as if a wave had passed
over them ; and, emerging here and there amid a sea
of grey coats, at distances far apart, a red coat might
be descried struggling not ineffectively to open a way
through the human billows opposing him.

The anxiety of Lord Raglan and his staff was painful
in the extreme.

" There was silence deep as death,
And the boldest held his breath
For a time."

But many have averred that the issue was never
doubtful. Without undue disparagement, it is safe to
affirm that the Russian cavalry was at that time in
every respect immeasurably inferior to our own ; and
its efficiency was also far below that of their infantry.
The machinery of slavery is the inspiration of the
Muscovite soldiery ; and when opposed to that sense

192 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 of individual interest and responsibility that the most
stringent martinet regulations can never extinguish in
the breast of the volunteer who serves a free country,
generally proves more or less valueless and ineffective.
The Russians offered but a brief resistance, and
disentangled themselves as best they might from the
Paladins opposed to them ; then broke and fled, leaving
many killed and more prisoners in the hands of our
Heavy Brigade.

And now a grim and solemn silence prevailed. The
enemy, still in possession of the redoubts (our outer line
of defence), appeared satisfied with this success, and
refrained from further demonstration.

But from his high post of observation on the elevated
plateau commanding a view of every part of the valley
and plain beneath. Lord Raglan discovered that the
Russians were bending every effort towards carrying off
the guns captured by them in No. 3 Redoubt, known as
Arabtabia. The Commander-in-Chief had already
twice communicated with Lord Lucan, the Divisional
Commander of the Cavalry ; but now he instinctively
realised that a forward movement of the Light Brigade
would tend to frustrate the purpose of the enemy. He
sent an aide-de-camp to Lord Lucan, urging him to
press the Russians in that part of the field ; for the
fourth infantry division, under Sir George Cathcart,
and the Duke of Cambridge, with the Brigade of
Guards, were hurrying down from the high table land
to our support. Obtaining no response from the
commander of the cavalry flivision, he dictated the
celebrated order, written by Quartermaster-General
Sir Richard Airey, marked " immediate," which was
entrusted to Captain Nolan (15th Hussars), on the
staff of the Quartermaster-General. It was worded
thus : —

" Lord Raglan wishes the cavalry to advance rapidly
to the front, and try to prevent the enemy carrying

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 193

away the guns. Troop of Horse Artillery may accom- 1854
pany. French cavalry is on your left. Immediate.

"(signed) R. Airey."

The eager and enthusiastic messenger entrusted with
this order, so full of direst import, rode at headlong
speed until he had placed it in the hands of Lord
Lucan, who read it with a sense of the gravest
responsibility and concern. There was no enemy with
guns in sight, and his lordship most pertinently and
anxiously enquired "What guns?" With a bearing,
which has been described as insolent and disrespectful.
Captain Nolan, waving his sword in the direction of the
enemy at the bottom of the valley, answered, " There
are the guns, my lord ; and it is for you to take them."
When it is understood that the aide-de-camp had
gathered knowledge acquired from the scrutiny of the
field from an elevated ground, where every disposition
of the enemy was fairly discernible, it surely must have
been his duty to have furnished the cavalry general with
information at once explicit and reliable. Captain
Nolan knew well indeed the intention of the Com-
mander-in-Chief ; which was, as we have seen, that the
Light Brigade should advance down the valley far
enough to thwart the design of the enemy to remove
the guns captured in Arabtabia, otherwise No. 3
Redoubt.

In the judgment of Lord Lucan, without clear
instructions, it appeared to him that the order was
intended as a command to advance the Light Cavalry
in the direction of the Russian twelve-gun battery at
the bottom, or furthermost slope of the valley. It
must have been with a feeling well-nigh approach-
ing consternation that Lord Lucan concluded that
nothing remained to him but to instruct Lord Cardigan
to advance his Light Brigade in the direction of the
Russian battery. Lord Cardigan, of course, as he

194 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 should have done, strongly remonstrated, but was
compelled to obey an order received, through his
immediate official superior, from the Field-Marshal
Commanding-in-Chief.

Lord Cardigan gave the word, " The Light Brigade
will advance, walk, march," succeeded almost im-
mediately by the command "Trot!" He placed
himself at the head of the first line and led, as he
himself has said, "right for the central gun of the
Russian battery," more than a mile and a quarter in
his front. And now, Captain Nolan, who, we must
still bear in mind, was perfectly aware of the project of
Lord Raglan, attempted to rectify the error which his
lack of explanation had occasioned. As the Light
Brigade advanced at a steady trot towards the main
body of the Russian Army, he galloped across the
front of the noble Brigadier, in a diagonal direction
towards the right, frantically waving his sword in the
direction of No. 3 Redoubt. But the attempted recti-
fication of the error came too late. Earlier words
would have been better than his later pantomime.
His action was misconstrued by Lord Cardigan, who
deemed that, contrary to all etiquette, the gallant
aide-de-camp was about to address the Brigade. This
nettled the Brigadier, whose situation, it must surely
be conceded, was most trying and critical. On the
left were the Fedouikine Hills, occupied by the
artillery and infantry of the enemy, who was also in
possession of the redoubts upon the right. Thus in
advancing the Light Brigade not only encountered
the fire of the twelve gun battery in front, but they
were also exposed to the cross fire on their right and
left. Could anything be hotter ? The first man to
fall was the intrepid Nolan. The splinter of a
shell struck him upon the heart, and he fell a victim to
his own impetuous daring and lack of discretion in
the exercise of his duty as agent between the Chief
of the army and his cavalry subordinate.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 195

Now let us pause for a moment to consider this 1854
hastily written order, delivered without a word of
explanation from the officer who carried it ; and who,
as we have seen, must have been perfectly aware of
the design of Lord Raglan. Let us peruse it with
calm, unbiassed, judicial consideration. "What
guns ? " — who could say so well as Captain Nolan ?
Undoubtedly he knew " what " guns. But his discretion
did not equal his arrogance and temper.

That Lord Raglan meant our own guns, lost in the
early morning, is now perfectly clear ; but surely it cannot
be contended that the purpose of the Commander-in-
Chief was perfectly explicit upon the face of the
written order that is before us ? All those implicated
in the magnificent disaster have long since passed
away ; and therefore, at this distance of time, it is open
to us to form an opinion without prejudice. As
Captain Nolan knew the design of Lord Raglan, he
should have made it equally clear to Lord Lucan. In
my humble judgment, the order, without the interpreta-
tion which its bearer could have rendered, was fatally
open to misconception ; and, terrible as were the results,
impartiality is constrained to exonerate Lord Lucan
from all blame. To sum up briefly : Captain Nolan
knew well the intentions of Lord Raglan ; it was there-
fore undoubtedly his duty to have enlightened the
divisional commander.

The written order was, I dare aver, without verbal
supplement, dangerously vague and misleading. And
■so it proved !

The Light Brigade moved at a steady trot, with a
subsequent slight increase of pace.

The first line, led by Lord Cardigan, comprised the
nth Hussars, the 17th Lancers, and the 13th Light
Dragoons ; the second line the 4th Light Dragoons,
-and the 8th Irish Hussars, under Lord George Paget.
But the 8th, through some misapprehension inclining
away too far to the right, became separated from the

13*

196 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 4th, with whom they should have remained in align-
ment.

Lord Cardigan led steadily onwards, looking neither
to right nor left, and, with the object of keeping his
Brigade well in hand, restrained, with heroic firmness,
the tendency of his excited men to break from the trot
into a gallop.

The Brigade had not advanced two hundred yards,
when they were as well arranged for receiving the
murderous fire of the enemy, as if their annihilation
had been ingeniously planned. Artillery and infantry
on the Fedouikine Hills poured a heavy fire into our
left flank ; the guns and musketry on the Causeway
doing even more execution upon our right ; while the
twelve gun battery in our front was served with terrible
effect, and with a constantly increasing precision : for
here was the enemy free for the practice of his-
gunnery and musketry, undaunted by any possibility
of response ! Men and horses fell thick and fast.
The roar of artillery, the hissing shells, the "pinging"
musketry, dealing death at every discharge — with the
agonized cries of the horribly mutilated, and ever and
anon, at lulled intervals, the groans of the dying, the
thud of hoofs, with the clatter of accoiy:rements — the
clouds of smoke and dust (which possibly may have
aided in hiding some portions of our ranks from the
observation of the foe), made up a scene of horror and
despair, which baffles all description ! My comrades
in the nth Hussars on my immediate right and left,
met with a speedy death ; and, in another instant, my
mare " Black Bess," possibly, like myself, seeing but
dimly through the blinding dust and smoke, bent her
knees upon the carcase of a dead horse right in her
path (the cross fire now was appalling), and would have
brought me to the earth, but that with a nerve and will
the occasion called forth, I lifted her to her feet, and
we resumed our onward ride towards the dozen fiery-
mouths of the belching battery still far in - front of us.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 197

(I was light in those days, riding under eleven stone). 1854
Under such conditions it was marvellous, how, by
closing up the gaps the enemy was making in our
ranks, we yet preserved something approaching to an
orderly formation. There never for a moment was
anything like the mad and disorganized rush, which
has so long been accepted by the general body of our
countrymen as descriptive of the wonderfully well-
sustained and steady advance under that murderous
front and cross fire. And I am proud that it was
so. Lord Cardigan would not be beguiled out of
his steady trot. Great as was the continuous peril
of the hour, he refused to increase his pace ; indeed,
when Captain White (17th Lancers), would have
broken to a gallop, and appeared about to pass his
leader, the Brigadier gently laid the flat of his sword
across his breast, as if to say : " No, sir ; not in front
of me ! "

It must have been when about two-thirds of the
North Valley had been traversed by the Light Brigade,
that my mare received a bullet, which lamed her very
badly. This, of course, decreased her pace, and I
found myself at some distance in the rear of my regi-
ment, and quite alone. The enemy's fire seemed for
a time to slacken. Finding myself quite unable with
my crippled mare to proceed in the direction of
the still advancing Light Brigade, I was about dis-
mounting, with, as it may be imagined, considerable
reluctance, when Providence decided for me. The
smoke and dust raised by the heavy fire and trampling
horse, had partially cleared away ; thus rendering me,
in the open, a more distinctive mark for the enemy's
attention. I received a ball through the calf of my
right leg from the infantry concealed on the Causeway
ridges, succeeded immediately by a grape shot, which,
just clearing the top of my skull by a hair's breadth,
tilted my busby to the right side ; " Black Bess " fell
prone to earth without a struggle ; she having accepted

198 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 the coup-de-grace with a bullet through her head. She
dropped right down between my legs, leaving me
standing over her clear though shaken by the fall. As
I stood for the moment "perplexed in the extreme"
with " the bullets still making dust spots on the green "
(for the wound in my leg was bleeding somewhat
freely), and was scrutinizing the ground in every direc-
tion, with intense and anxious gaze, I observed on my
right front several parties of the enemy's lancers
engaged in the cruel and cowardly work of maltreating
and murdering some of our dismounted men. One
man of my own regiment, whose face was streaming
with blood (I knew him to be one of ours by the colour
of his overalls), was, in his wounded condition, which
might have evoked the pity of the hardest heart, ruth-
lessly attacked and slain by some half-dozen of these
butchers. The wretches were at no considerable dis-
tance from me. I was also collected enough to ob-
serve with more distinctiveness, another man of the
nth left dismounted and unarmed. Nathan Henry had
lost his sword, and was of course quite at the mercy
of these fiends ; but, in hi^ case, from some unex-
plained cause, they desisted from their murderous
practice, and made him a prisoner. I think it is pro-
bable that the appearance of an officer may have
acted upon these ruffians as a deterrent ; for I believe
there were but few cases in which the enemy evinced
unnecessary harshness when their officers were present.
Tom Spring of ours, who was taken prisoner, how-
ever, had a cruel experience, which must be quoted as
an exception to this rule ; and I have only lately heard
the story from Tom's own lips, with feelings of burning
indignation.

He fell with his horse after passing through the
battery; and was unable to extricate his foot from one
of his stirrup-irons, which was overpressed by his
horse's dead body. He explained that his sword at
this time was discoloured with blood, and that this

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 199

sight may have kindled the cruel ire of his assailant. 1854
But a Russian officer (Tom thought of high rank),
descrying him in the plight I have shewn, in the most
dastardly manner fired every chamber of his revolver
at the prostrate and helpless hussar. It was only a
month or two ago Tom shewed me the deep indenta-
tions from these bullets directed at his breast ; any one
of which would doubtless have proved fatal, but for
the resistance offered by the woollen padding of his
hussar jacket.

But as I still stood dismounted, the sight of the
atrocities in front of me, gave me nerve, and steeled
my beating heart. I had but faint hope of ever reach-
ing the British lines ; but I resolved to make some-
thing like a stand. I disencumbered myself of my
waist-belts and scabbard, of course retaining my sword,
for our carbines were attached to the saddlery and not
available.

My situation seemed desperate, for no one appeared
in sight but these blood-thirsty Cossacks. I had not
yet been seen by them, but could hardly expect, as I
stood there detached and solitary, much longer to
escape their observation. I had abandoned all hope of
escaping with life, though resolved to sell it dearly,
when I heard behind me the " thudding " of cavalry,
and to my infinite and indescribable relief, I discovered
it was the good old 8th, who had, I assume, remedied
their mistake in losing their original alignment with the
4th Light Dragoons.

But the position of the 8th at this crisis shows how
rapidly the drama of war was passing before us. The
regiment was led by Colonel Shewell ; Troop-Sergeant-
Major Harrison ("Old Bags" the men called him,
for he would wear his overalls loose and easy),
took in my situation at a glance. He was leading a
riderless grey mare, in the belief that she might pre-
sently prove of use. He reined up close to me, and
cried, "Come on, my boy, mount her ! " I needed but

200 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 slight instigation, and contrived, wounded as I was,
to scramble into the saddle ; and it was by the side of
" Old Bags " that I continued to advance with the 8th
Royal Irish Hussars. He lived to receive Her
Majesty's commission ; and twenty-five years after, I
had the pleasure of dining with him ; the renewal of
our acquaintance having arisen in consequence of a
letter I had written to the Daily News, which he
had read, and in which I had related the story of my
rescue.

My deliverer was much gratified when we recalled
the incident, for it had been almost as strongly im-
pressed on his memory as upon mine. He had then
retired from the service, and was in a very good
position in one of the Australian Banks, where his
late chief (Colonel De Salis) was upon the directorate.
" Old Bags " has long since been gathered to his
fathers. May he rest in peace !

We had not ridden fifty yards under a now slacken-
ing fire, when we became aware of stragglers mounted
and dismounted, badly disabled, making their way
past us, as best they might, in the direction of our
lines.

We had to exercise considerable caution, for the
valley was strewn with the helplessly wounded, the
dying, and the dead. Things looked black, indeed.
This rearmost regiment of the Brigade was now far
from all support, or hope of assistance.

It was about this time that some alert individual
observed a body of lancers ranged across the valley in
our rear, thus interposed between us and the British
lines. In the excitement which prevailed, many mis-
took them for our own 1 7 th, forgetting for the moment
that those fine fellows were in front. " Hurrah ! the
1 7th Lancers ! " But a more careful regard revealed
the grey-coated Russian. " My God ! cutoff!" We
were now halted by Colonel Shewell, who quickly
decided upon his course of action ; and gave the word,

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 201

"8th Hussars, rightabout wheel," a manoeuvre which 1854
was completed as steadily as on a peace parade. " We
must break through those men ; keep together, and
follow me," he commanded, or words of the same
import. The Russian cavalry remained stationary,
until we had nearly reached them at the highest rate of
speed we could attain ; and, as if astounded at our deter-
mined rush, allowed one flank to fall back ; though
many of us had to break through their dense and deep
formation. They offered but a half-hearted opposition ;
as we cleared them, and flew free, they commenced a
pursuit ; but by no means one of set purpose. I found
myself separated in the rush from my friends of the
8th, and was then singled out by half a dozen
lancers, who kept me employed at my best in parrying
their points ; thus urging me to use all my efforts to
encourage the pace of the mare. She went with a
splendid stride, and I began to leave my pursuers
behind. A few bullets raised the dust about her hoofs,
but she escaped unhurt.

I shall never forget to my dying hour, the deep
thankfulness with which I caught sight of our gallant
"Heavies"; at which time my grey-coated pursuers
turned their horses' heads about, and left me safe and
sound ; for my wound, though disabling, was fortunately
not yet unbearable. How I lost touch with the 8th I
never knew ; but I did so, and for some few minutes
had a very warm time !

I remember that the first man I encountered was a
sergeant of the 1 3th, who rode towards me, and grasped
me warmly by the hand. I had never, to my know-
ledge, met him previously ; but the feeling which
inspired him, may be readily understood, if not easily
defined. It was the "one touch of nature." I was
now of course free from any chance of further molesta-
tion, and rode towards what had been the Light
Brigade encampment in the early morning. Some
good fellows assisted me to dismount, for my right leg

202 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 was now stiff and useless ; but when I reached the
ground, I contrived to get in front of that grey mare's
head, and I kissed her on the nose. " The grey mare "
had indeed, in my case, proved "the better horse." I
parted from her with feelings of mingled gratitude and
regret. I rested at full length upon the ground, near
the side of Lieutenant Trevelyan of " Ours" ; indeed I
belonged to his troop. He was hors de combat from a
wound very similar to mine, a bullet having passed
through the calf of his left leg. He very generously
handed me his haversack, and invited me to partake of
its contents. I have seen him upon several occasions
of late years, but have not thought of recalling the
incident.

The vicissitudes of war tend to create a strong feel-
ing of comradeship between all ranks of the service ;
and this feeling will exist, while duty and discipline yet
conserve a line of demarcation, which may not be over-
stepped.

I have frequently been interrogated as to the nature
of my feelings as we advanced ; and what might have
been the power that sustained me. But it is difficult to
lay bare one's soul, or to analyze its emotions, even
under the happiest conditions, for thought passes
through the mind as rapidly as the errant forces of
electricity. Personally (and it is probable that my
experience may have borne a general application),
though far from possessing nerves of iron, and believing
that my last hour had come (for every man in the
Brigade must have realised the awful hazard of that
mad advance, and that a fatal blunder was being
wrought), I proudly braced myself to preserve an out-
ward bearing which should give no indication of the
conflict within. In riding to what appeared certain
death, I must have involuntarily and instantly resolved
that no shadow should fall upon me as a soldier ; and
that no kin of mine should ever have cause to blush at
the mention of my name. And the glorious traditions

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 203

of our army must have flashed across my mental view ; 1854
the love of England and her great name in arms —
pride, self-respect, a sense of duty — perhaps these
all tended to outweigh that common instinct which
recoils from scenes of blood and death, and has aptly
been described as " the first law of nature." And then
I hold that the immediate expectation of a certain and
honourable death has no such terrors as the continual
apprehension of a danger which is prospective, and
when there is time for deliberate reflection upon the
possibilities of an eventual catastrophe. But how
difficult it is to reason upon the faith that may be in us,
or to track the source of thought or emotion to its
hidden spring. It is not impossible that mine may
have been the general experience, though I can accord
it but inadequate expression. Perhaps, some may say,
that the operation of emotions such as I have faintly
endeavoured to indicate are too sacred and inexplicable,
and are better left unspoken in the secret chambers of
the soul.

This by the way : but I must not quit that terrible
North Valley without recording my admiring sense of
the splendid service rendered to the Light Brigade, by
the French Generals of Cavalry, Morris and D'Allon-
ville, with their magnificent squadrons of the Chasseurs
D'Afrique. These gallant horsemen silenced the
batteries and infantry on the Fedouikine ridges, and
compelled the enemy to withdraw. They sprang like
lightning upon the Russian flank, and threw the
division posted there, into something approaching con-
fusion. And I also will take the opportunity here of
referring to the perplexity which has arisen in the
public mind, in consequence of the recent sale of a
trumpet, at a fabulous sum, with which it is alleged
"the Charge" was sounded when the Light Brigade
advanced ! As a matter of stern, incontrovertible fact,
I can positively state that no trumpet sounded in the
Light Brigade that day. There is evidence, positive

204 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 and negative, of every person in authority present to
disprove the assertion.*

In Lord George Paget's " Journal," Colonel John
Douglas, nth Hussars, furnishing some friendly
criticisms in the Appendix, writes : " After passing
through the right of the battery, I here saw a body of
Russian cavalry on my left front, and on the impulse of
the moment determined to attack them. My first im-
pulse was to charge, but, on the instant, I saw how
fruitless such a proceeding would be."

With regard to Lord Cardigan's bearing in the fray,
I think I have never read anything with deeper feelings
of repulsion than Mr. Kinglake's unwarranted in-
nuendoes upon the fair fame of my brigadier, which

* Mr. Kinglake, the historian of the war, never hints at such a detail in his
account of the Light Cavalry advance : and we have the evidence of Lord George
Paget, second in command ; of Lord Tredegar (then Captain George Morgan,
17th Lancers), in a recent letter to the Times ; of Colonel John Douglas, and
many others, to prove that such assertions are misrepresentations, and that the
pace never exceeded a "brisk trot," even when our brave fellows rode through
the Russian battery. I have never been confuted by any one of the pretenders
who have laid claim to the distinction of having " sounded " ; and I will quote a
couple of sentences from my last and recent letter to the Standard, which has
elicited no reply, nor contradiction. " Lord George Paget, in his ' Journal of the
Crimean War, ' says, ' I prefer to call this charge an advance, for we rode at a
brisk trot nearly two miles, without support ' (I think he unwittingly ex^gerates
the distance) ' flanked by a murderous fure from the hills on each side ' : and I
have also written thus : ' There is not a particle of reliable evidence that the
Light Brigade moved in response to any trumpet sound ; butVl suppose we must
take it that these unworthy mis-statements have been repeated so often that those
giving them publicity have, as Shakespeare has it, become such ' ' sinners unto
memory," as really to regard them true.' "

It is unfortunate that Sir William Russell should have left himself open to be
quoted as lending the sanction of his authority to the " trumpet " myth. He
writes the foUowii^ in the midst of other eloquent passages :

' ' The instant they (the Russians) came in sight, the trumpets of our cavalry
gave out the warning blast." I doubt not, that when Sir William wrote the above,
he attached but slight importance to such detail ; but only intended it as a graceful
rhetorical flourish (of trumpets !) not to be taken too seriously. I again wrote
in The Standard:

" My old friend, Troop-Sergeant-Major Keyte, of the ist, or Royal Drs^oons
says, ' No bugle nor trumpet sounding took place in either Brigade.' "

In an unpublished letter dated October 26th, 1854, written by Lieutenant
Seager, adjutant of the 8th Royal Irish Hussars (afterwards Lieut. -General
Seager, C.B. ), occurs the following: We advanced at a trot, and soon came
within the cross fire from both hills, of cannon and rifles. The fire was tre-
mendous, shells bursting among us, cannon balls tearing up the ground and
Minie balls coming like hail. Still on we went, never altering our pace,
or breaking up in the least . . . Our men behaved splendidly."

See Appendix III.

FHOM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 205

amount to aspersions upon his fortitude and constancy 1854
" in line of battle." That my old commanding officer
was by no means faultless, is unfortunately beyond
question. His manner was somewhat harsh and over-
bearing, and the rank and file of the nth Hussars,
were accustomed to refer to James Thomas Brudenell,
seventh Earl of Cardigan, as "Jim the Bear." And
though there were occasions when his lack of judgment,
in my humble opinion, evinced his unfitness for inde-
pendent command, it would have been dangerous to
have even hinted at such charges as have been openly
discussed by the writer named, in the presence of the
men of his regiment at any time. He possessed little
mental capacity, and owed his military position to the
power of wealth. He was one of the results of the
unjust and degrading system of purchase ; and I have
learnt, upon pretty good authority, that he expended a
fabulous sum in acquiring the colonelcy of our regi-
ment.

" O, that estates, degrees, and offices,
Were not derived corruptly ! and that clear honour
Were purchased by the merit of the wearer !
How many then should cover that stand bare
How many be commanded that command ! "

He carried pride of birth and position to the point of
snobbery, and his nature was by no means lovable.
He was disliked, and, as a consequence, has been
greatly disparaged by officers ; but I never heard any
of the "rank and file" speak of him, as a soldier, in
other than admiring terms ; and, astonishing to relate,
I have even heard him referred to by his men as " The
Murat of the British Army."

That he could at times relax his martinet tendencies,
a constrained personal interview I had with him will
sufficiently attest. I had been "on pass," the margin
as to time of course being limited, and which I had
overstayed many hours (a glaring breach of discipline).
When I reached the barrack main gate, I was, as I

2o6 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 expected, made a prisoner by the sergeant of the guard,
and detained in the guard room until the usual mid-day
orderly room business. Lord Cardigan happened to
be in Dublin, and, Rhadamanthus-like, was sitting in
judgment upon offenders. The adjutant is usually
present to testify to the character of the delinquents.
My case came on. " What have you to say ? " my
colonel growled, in harsh, fell tones. Instinctively I felt
• that no excuses, even could I have advanced any,
would here avail. Looking him full in the face, with-
out any hesitation, I frankly replied: "Nothing, my
lord, but it shall not occur again." He appeared, I
thought, surprised, and I fancied I saw an expression
of gratification flit across his stern features, for he
doubtless credited that I should be as good as my word.
He turned shortly on old Sergeant Ennis. "What sort of
character ? " " Very good, my lord,'" was the reply, with
a stress upon the " very." Still regarding me fixedly,
and seeing I did not shrink from scrutiny, " Fall away ! "
commanded " Jim the Bear," meaning " Make yourself
scarce." He impressed me strangely in that interview.

Lord Cardigan's account of himself when he had
reached the Russian battery, and became separated
from his Brigade, seems to me perfectly straightforward
and consistent in all its details ; but I fear that his
great unpopularity with all ranks of officers told very
much against him, as his story appears to have been
somewhat discredited.

He certainly did not bring his Brigade out of action,
but he led them nobly in. Lord Alfred Paget once
said to me, " Cardigan took you in, Pennington, but my
brother George brought you out."

Captain Morris, a most intrepid soldier (known as
the " Pocket Hercules," for he was forty-three inches
round the chest, though under the middle height), in
command of the 1 7th Lancers, impatient to be up and
doing at so stirring an hour, urged Lord Cardigan to
permit him with his two squadrons to fall upon the

THE EARL OF CARDIGAN

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 207

right flank of the Russian cavalry, when, in the earlier 1854
action, they appeared to be overwhelming our Heavy
Brigade. Cardigan, conceiving that the instructions he
had received from Lord Lucan did not warrant him
detaching any portion of his command for this par-
ticular service, refused the gallant captain's request. I
understand that Lucan was, upon many points, in
disagreement with Lord Cardigan, and was, therefore,
by no means disposed to concede anything not due to
the credit of the unpopular brigadier ; yet he said of
him, in a spirit of something approaching to admira-
tion, "He led like a gentleman." This testimony to
the account of my much maligned commander I derive
from the "Crimea" of Sir Evelyn Wood, himself a
leader " nulli secundus " in the British service.

While much disparaging censure was being cast upon
him by his numerous enemies, Mr. Kinglake's account
was in course of compilation ; and a correspondence
took place, from which we may gather that Lord
Cardigan fully recognised the gravity of the indictment
against him, and appealed, in no craven spirit, to Mr.
Kinglake to accept the explanation of his return from
the valley without any injurious reservation, that no
impeachment upon his honour and courage might stand
permanently recorded.

To my mind, there is something bordering upon the
pathetic in^ the solitary and friendless figure which this
distinguished, but unfortunate, military commander
presents in the history of the Crimean war ; his
memory uncared for by one intimate and loving heart,
proudly isolated and apart, with his reputation at the
mercy of the verdict of a harsh and pitiless adjudicator."

The following brief letter contains all the account of
the memorable 25th October found in Kelson Stothert's
correspondence. Calamities occurred with such fre-
quency during this Autumn that the men who were

2o8 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

free to record them seemed to put down only the facts
report brought them, without indulging too freely in
expression of the sentiments and emotions which their
oft-roused feelings of pity and indignation might have
warranted. Accurate news of the Army's doings did
not invariably reach the Fleet for some days, and the
uncertain and meagre tidings of the tragic occurrences
of the 25th October, proved no exception.

TO HIS MOTHER.

27th October, 1854.

We hear that yesterday a severe affair of outposts occurred
at Balaklava, our Point d'appui, which had been left guarded
by the marine force from the Fleet, three thousand Turks, and
all our cavalry. The Russians, who were known to be in the
neighbourhood, attacked this position with a heavy force of
cavalry, and, driving the cowardly Turks from their guns like
sheep, succeeded in capturing two of the cannon. Our marines
immediately opened fire, both upon the Russians and upon the
retreating Turks also. My informant (one of our blue-jackets
who was carried by at the time upon a bullock cart, badly
wounded) tells me he saw an officer of horse artillery cut
down four of them as they ran from their guns. The}' are
bad soldiers, maintain no look out, and Allah himself cannot
keep them from their beds and their pipes, to enjoy which
they consider it legitimate either to destroy a friend or to
lose a battle. We hear that they actually ran away with
their beds on their backs, and never awaited the Russian
charge, and did not even spike the guns. Lord Cardigan made
a desperate charge with his cavalry brigade, and, with his
gallant horsemen, swept through the Russian ranks ; -and, aided
by the fire of the marines, finally drove back the enem\'. The
loss has been great to our little band of horsemen : 1 20 brave
fellows were killed outright, and many more wounded were
speared without mercy as they lay on the ground by the
Cossack lancers. The Russians have orders to give no
quarter, and therefore I hope that if we catch Mentschikoff
we shall hang him as an example to all inhuman ^^retches
like himself His diplomacy brought on the war, and his
merciless cruelty will quickly make it one of extermination.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 209

2Zth October. — A smart action has taken place on the
Simpheropol road to the east of Sevastopol, but I have not
been able to learn particulars.

[This postscript must refer to the sortie towards the
camp of the 2nd Division from Sevastopol on the 26th,
when Captain Gerald Goodlake, of the Coldstreams, with
his sharpshooters, gave so good an account of themselves.
The Rifles, too, had some honour in the victory, and Mr.
Hewett,* by adroitly slewing his Lancaster gun, gave the
retreaters a suitable valediction. Sir de Lacy Evans was
the moving spirit in this daring repulse. Told briefly,
the combat was this : "An advance of some 5,000 Russian
infantry encountered for a while by a chain of slowly
receding pickets, and then crushed all at once by artillery."-f-
— Told in Lord George Paget's terse manner : " Evans's
Division gave them a rare slating on the 26th."] %

This sad campaign has plunged many into sorrow. God be
good to them ! John Adye was very well a few days ago, but
he may be dead now. Such is the uncertain state in which we
all are. ' He has done a great deal of work, and would be a
lieutenant-colonel if the war should last another year. Very
few of our men have yet been killed in the trenches, although
the loss of the Russians is stated to be a thousand a day. The
firing is very slack at present, but I can hear it rumbling in the
distance. It is a toss up whether our powder or theirs lasts
longest.

The want of medical men is very severely felt, and the
wounded are in a wretched state. From the hardships they
endure, and the bad climate of this horrible place, gangrenous
sloughings commonly occur to every serious wound. Poor
fellows ! You have, of course, read the descriptions of the sick
and wounded given in the Times by Chinnery, the sub-editor,
who is now at Stamboul. They are in no wise exaggerated.

Why do not the people of England send out help, and
Sisters of Mercy, and linen bandages ?

♦ Afterwards Sir W. N. W. Hewett. For this action he got the V.C.

t " Invasion of the Crimea," page 17, vol. V. — Kinglake.

} "The Light Cavalry Brigade in the Crimea," page 77. — Lord George P^et.

CHAPTER XVII.

" Now the good Gods forbid
That our renowned Rome, whose gratitude
Towards her deserved children is enroll'd
In Jove's own book, Hke an unnatural dam
Should now eat up her own."

Nearly fifty years have passed since Kelson Stothert
penned the sentence which ends the last chapter. It
is curious that after so long an interval a similar
question, concerning the welfare of some of the very
sufferers about whom he then wrote, must be asked
to-day.

Why do not the people of England make some
tangible provision for the survivors of the Balaklava
Charge ?

It may be that no practical nor large-hearted
attention has been called to their present condition,
else it is incredible that a National offering has not
effected the desired result. Men who have been
recognized as heroes are not appropriate recipients
of charity ; and the much-boasted pride in their gallant
feat must indeed appear farcical and hollow to those
of their number who can look forward only to
indigence, now increase of years has crippled and
wasted their energies.

Even the most casual study of barbarian traditions
yields profitable hints about the treatment of veteran
warriors. By civilized nations it has been invariably
considered a disgrace that soldiers, who have fought

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 211

and bled for their Sovereign and country, should not
be protected and cared for, especially in their old age.
While deprecating all prejudiced estimate of conduct,
and false sentiment, it must be acknowledged that
Englishmen, in this one particular instance, appear to
have been infected by the Turk, with that indifference
to the needs of disabled soldiery, for which he is so
notorious.

The relation of a great historic event naturally leads
to enquiry about the careers of those who were in any
way responsible for it. Tragedies do not always end
with the principal act ; there are sordid and pitiful
scenes which have to be played out ere the curtain
drops on each individual's last appearance, which lack
the novel, sudden life-and-death situations of the
earlier parts, but are life-and-death situations all the
same.

A strange shadow sometimes dogs the footsteps of
those upon whom the gods have once smiled. Some
deeper joy than others grasp may have been theirs for
a little while ; they may have even heard their own
poor names shouted by the fickle voice of fame, but,
nevertheless, the victims seem compelled to expiate
by slow, long hours of endurance and toil, the brief,
though brilliant, indulgence aforetime wrung from an
unwilling Fate, who must thus be appeased.

It is a unique fact that the survivors of an unsur-
passed deed in an unsurpassed reign, have been
permitted to go on from year to year fending for
themselves as best they have been able. Although
their heroism has over and over again inspired the
genius of both painter and poet, the heroes themselves
have received, in generous England, only that per-
functory notice which has effected little more for their
benefit than ignoring them altogether.

It is true that upon a memorable occasion in
Parliament questions were asked as to a report that
some survivors of the Balaklava Charge had ended

14*

212 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

their days in the workhouse, but certain ingenious
replies silenced the well-meant inquiries.* When an
outside agitation ensued, and a great National tribute
might have been offered, a number of military nota-
bilities formed themselves into a grand committee to
head the movement, but their zeal fell short of making
speeches in public to urge the country to respond
liberally. There was also a sub-committee organized,
comprised of survivors, non-commissioned officers, and
rank and file. It is permissible to believe that, in
other hands, the inception of the appeal, as well as the
subsequent operations, would have had a more sub-
stantial result. " No precedent for such a course "
was doubtless the more-than-probable reply to enthusi-
astic suggestions for honouring the men, who had not
only done a deed for which there was certainly no
precedent in the records of the War Office, but who
had also borne the privations of the whole campaign,
aggravated, as they had been, by official mismanage-
ment and neglect.

The beggarly sum of ;^6,ooo was all that was

* It may be well to cite the case of Sergeant Richard Brown, which is
vouched for by one who long knew him intimately. It is a significant fact that
his death occurred years after the Light Brigade Fund had been subscribed. He
belonged to the nth Hussars, and served with the Light Brigade through the
whole of the Crimean Campaign. He had been the favourite orderly of Lord
Cardigan, and was for some years the devoted and trusty henchman of Colonel John
Douglas. Handsome and honest, he was truly a model soldier, for, in his long
service of 21 years, he was never in the defaulter's book. It was known that if
he had not been illiterate he would have borne Her Majesty's commission. He
certainly had a pension of the heroic sum of one shilling and threepence per diem,
and for twelve years subsequent to his retirement from the service he worked
(often ankle-deep in water) at a canal side in Manchester, but when ^e and
rheumatism rendered him incapable, he was compelled to go to the workhouse.

A friend strongly urged the scandal of so good a soldier, and so honourable a
man, being allowed to perish by the way, and obtained the promise of the post of
messenger in the War Office for the veteran, but when papers, attesting the truth
of all that had been stated, were furnished to the department, it was discovered
that he was past the age which precedent and routine required he (a "hero" of
Balaklava, God save the mark !) should be under for the appointment.

" We are too well acquainted with these answers."

Sergeant Richard Brown, forgotten by his country, died in the workhouse, and
yet it has often been said of him, that "no better man ever drew the breath of
life." How often he must have regretted that he had not died with his comrades
in the fatal North Valley, instead of having to look forward to filling the grave of
apauper-hero in his native land.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 213

subscribed by Great Britain and her Colonies ; and
of this a thousand pounds were the proceeds of a
matinee given by the generous directorate of the
Empire Theatre, who, it was said, were refused even a
Guard of Honour to grace the occasion. A large
balance of the six thousand collected, is still in the
hands of the Committee of the Patriotic Fund, who
are also in possession of an immense sum given
during the Crimean War, by all sorts and conditions
of men and women, with the object that no British
sailor nor soldier should in future die of starvation.*
^ A Parliamentary Committee, in giving judgment on
matters connected with the war, used these words :

" The patience and fortitude of the Army demand
the admiration and gratitude of the nation, on whose
behalf they have fought, bled, and suffered. Their
heroic valour and equally heroic patience under
sufferings and privations have given them claims upon
their country which will be long remembered and
gratefully acknowledged."

The irony of circumstance is often more than
suggested by the contrast of promise with fulfilment,
and in nothing has this same irony of circumstance been
more forcibly exemplified than by the fact that certain
individuals who have been employed in the distribution
of the Royal Patriotic Fund, are now, no doubt justly,
in receipt of pensions provided by that fund, while the
urgent needs of some of the very men who inspired
its inception, are totally ignored both by the Royal
Patriotic Fund Committee and the " nation on whose
behalf they fought, bled, and suffered" nearly half a
century ago.

Most of the survivors of the Light Brigade received
the sum of fifteen pounds before the residue of the
;^6,ooo was made over. 'Twas verily a cheap method
of teaching frugality, and a gift that could not fail to

* See Appendix IV.

214 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

induce thrift ; but the pathetic humour of the con-
summation of the formal proceedings strongly suggests
the chorus of an appropriate song, which contains the
disappointing order :

"Tommy, fall be'ind ! "

Had the Corporation of London, or a number of
influential citizens, taken upon themselves the actual
business of raising the Fund, or had the Daily
Telegraph made one of its eloquent appeals on behalf
of the Light Brigade, the country, so proud of her
gallant sons, must have responded with her usual
munificence, and a sum would doubtless have been
subscribed that would have given every survivor
(possibly including those of the Heavy Brigade charge
also) at least one pound a week for the remainder of
his days.

With no painful questionings of a prying or inqui-
sitorial character, these individuals might have been
asked if they accepted or declined the income, for
some of them still receive the pittance — pretentiously
styled pension — which barely suffices to keep soul and
body together ; while even the few surviving officers
might have been offered a "grant" by a grateful
country.

The accuracy of the roll published in 1879, under
the auspices of the Balaklava Commemoration Society,
was never called in question till Mr. T. W. Roberts
issued invitations to the survivors of the Light Brigade
to be his guests on the occasion of the Queen's
Diamond Jubilee. Men then came forward claiming
the distinction of having shared in the dangers of
the 25th October, 1854, who had hitherto remained
silent.

Of the 673 horsemen who rode down the North
Valley only 197 rode back, and it is an indubitable
fact that there are still over thirty genuine survivors of

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES 215

that unparalleled military achievement. It is pro-
bable they were all either gallant lancers, gay
dragoons, or rollicking hussars ; and among them
may have been many thriftless ones, who did not
invariably take life very seriously. In that hour,
however, duty was the dominant impulse, and no
army of paladins ever sat their horses with graver
resolve. Riding to almost certain death, they never
swerved, and they held their reins in no uncertain
mood ; their gloveless hands were firm, and a high-
mettled courage impelled them bravely to uphold the
honour of England before the world.

The story of that ride has been often told, and will
be recounted to generations yet unborn. For the
honour of England 'twere well no question should then
be asked about the manner in which these heroes were
permitted to end their days.

Though there are legislators who seem to believe
that if the distribution of prize moneys were expedited,
the result would be a panacea for all the troubles of
superannuated soldiers, it would not meet the present
case. Fortunately, it is not too late, even now, to
repair a National wrong by a National offering to the
few surviving veterans of a deed that will ever illumine
a dismal chapter of history. In all the doubtful hap-
penings of a doubtful campaign, there were certain
potentialities on which the leaders could always rely ;
for grim self-sacrifice, and splendid zeal, were the
invincible weapons of every crew in the Fleet, and of
every battalion in the Army.

To the British cavalry the word Balaklava must
long be a spur to grand endeavour, and it is indeed
incongruous that any man who survived so fatal a
charge should now be worsted and despoiled by
ruthless time or evil circumstance.

Although the result of that unparalleled ride was
no coveted concession of territory, nor ambiguous
commercial treaty (the ultimate but unconfessed objects

21 6 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

of too many of the wars of the nineteenth century),
it shed unsullied and imperishable glory on British
valour. Therefore, the present unrewarded condition
of the men who took part in it, should surely appeal
more directly to the true heart of the nation, than if
their act had merely brought about some material
advantage, over which diplomatists could wrangle and
speculators gloat.

Chivalrous justice has an ardent foUowmg in every
land of the Empire. Their countrymen need but to
be assured that the heroes of the 25th October, 1854,
have not had any real provision made for their
old age.

The rest can be safely left to Englishmen.

217

CHAPTER XVIII.

We must turn once more to the 25th of October, 1854,
which began ominously for the Allies. The British
base was in jeopardy, and the enemy appeared to be
about to mass his colossal army to attack the rear of
the invaders. In a letter written by Sir Arthur Black-
wood on that date occurs the significant sentence : —
" Everybody in Balaklava in a great funk ; ships get-
ting under way." Disastrous as the day proved, its
glorious incidents added, in an unparalleled degree, to
the renown of British cavalry, and a fresh laurel was
also won that morning by the 93rd Highlanders.

The Turks in the redoubts were overmatched both
by the numbers opposed to them and calibre of
artillery. They had opened fire on the approaching
enemy, and in No. i redoubt one hundred and seventy
of ragged but resolute believers perished gallantly.
The survivors in the isolated earthworks were far from
supports, and panic was inevitable. When the eager
Calmuck countenance glared at close quarters, "Allah!
Allah !" was the terrified Mussulman's cry. 'Twas a
goodly salutation for death truly, but even so sacred an
invocation did not ward off the fatal thrust.

Liprandi, having become possessed of all the aban-
doned redoubts, a considerable body of his cavalry was
shortly sent to the northern valley ; but four squadrons
were moved to the south-west, north of Kadikoi, where
was now the Heavy Brigade, watching and alert.

Sir Colin Campbell, commanding the 93rd High-

2i8 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

i8S4 landers, had here also a battery of Field Artillery, some
Marines, Turks and invalids, for defence of the gorge
which led to the port. A determined resistance was
made to the enemy by the Highlanders, who received
his cavalry in line. The astonished Russians were
forcibly driven back, and, because of this unique feat,
the 93rd is the only infantry regiment which bears on
its colours the memorable word Balaklava.

And now Lord Lucan's responsibility begins. The
Russian squadrons suddenly appear, and General
Scarlett, perceiving the advantage of charging the
moment they come to a halt, is seen with his aide-de-
camp, trumpeter and orderly, at the gallop, yards in
front of the Greys and Iniskillings, who follow his lead,
and plunge right into the enemy's column, while quickly
the Royal Irish and the " Green Horse," on flank and
rear, press the now broken but determined foe. The
infuriate Russians are burning with frenzy, for " how
to kill two at a blow " is each man's sole desire. To
the onlooker it appears that the dauntless "three hun-
dred " are inextricably wedged in by the dense masses
of Russian Light Cavalry. In the violent impact the
very closeness is safety, and the impetus holds good
while " the demoniac element " which, Carlyle says,
"lurks in all human things," gets vent in a swift, wild
struggle. The firing from the uplands aids the brave
and daring Heavies, and soon the squadrons of the
Tsar, doubtless taking with them a salutary dread of
such another encounter, are in retreat, followed by
Captain Brandling's troop of Horse Artillery.

If Lord Cardigan at that hour missed the chance he
had of aiding General Scarlett, as has been asserted,
he found, ere noon, another opportunity to prove the
mettle of his courage — a forlorn hope of exceeding
certainty. In defiance of an almost universal military
rule that to take guns cavalry must be supported by
infantry, he essayed obedience to an ambiguous order

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 219

which sent his peerless brigade riding straight to the 1854
death-dealing cannon at the end of the north valley.
Some strategists have called that ride a useless feat of
daring, for, even while they rode, the victims must have
known they were being uselessly sacrificed ; and yet,
recognising this blunder, they rode on. Fire from
musketry and from batteries on the Causeway Heights
on the one side, and from the Fedouikine Hills on the
other, did not deter them, but, with set purpose, they
faced their goal, the twelve-gun battery in front, which
was incessantly belching forth its dire and terrible
warning. Saddles were emptied and horses killed in
appalling numbers. Squadrons of Muscovite cavalry
and masses of Russian infantry awaited their oncoming ;
but it was only the wreck of the splendid brigade that
reached the guns, where they made some wild havoc
ere they turned. *

Generals D'Allonville, Morris and Champeron, with
the Chasseurs d'Afrique, opportunely, and with gallant
alacrity, attacked the batteries on the Fedouikine
Heights, which had harassed the advance ; dismay and
rout relieved the stragglers-back of the fire from that
side. The leader emerged from the deadly onslaught
only slightly wounded, but that day's work smirched
more than one reputation.! Fame was quickly won,
and quickly lost, in the Crimea, as in other wars.

The breath of the people ; the whisper of the de-
tractor ; the heedless word ; the word withheld ; these
were all-powerful factors industriously employed by the
god Jealousy, and Lord Cardigan had to bear the
brunt of praise, much mingled with censure, as well as
that cheap criticism which is the characteristic offering
of individuals to whom heroism is mere " Quixotism."

* "After this hard day (over about one o'clock), we were not allowed to go
back to our lines till 5 p.m., though only five hundred yards off, and none of the
men or horses had had anything to eat since the night before. " — Lord George
Paget's "Diary," page 72.

t " The Russians have since inquired who led the charge." " Life of Admiral
Sir W. R. Niends, C.G.B."— Bowen Stilon Mends.

2 20 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

i8S4 To single out the names of the daring swordsmen of
the 25th would crowd the pages, and it would be in-
vidious to select from a Valhalla-roll where all were
brave. Modest Scarlett was proud enough of his chief's
"well done." "More than one good tall fellow," who
bit the dust of those valleys, must have had something
beyond a dim suspicion that, though there would be
no earthly promotions nor rewards for them, they had
put forward all they knew in every clean stroke they
had wielded against an enemy who was certainly no
coward, and strong to boot. The old French motto,
Plus cPkonneur que cF honneurs, their conduct, and
fate, alas, indeed, had justified.

Although the uniform and equipment of British
officers renders them very distinct to their foes, were
the vote taken among themselves, it would, in all like-
lihood, result in favour of their appearance making
them conspicuous rallying points when troops are scat-
tered in action. Of the dead and desperately wounded
in this advance, the officers made a sad proportion ;
notwithstanding an oft-quoted brilliant soldier-author
wrote : " The 25th of October, 1854, may be set down
as the date of a drawn fight, the failures of which were
pretty equally divided between the combatants, the
honours of which undoubtedly belonged to the English
trooper." *

As cavalry alone is not ever expected to take
cannon, and the Light Brigade having almost perished
in an unsupported attack on a line of field guns, some
consciousness of the superiority of the Army to which
it belonged, may have been forced upon Russian troops.
Victory, however, in the ordinary sense of the word
was not the result of the day's occurrences, for the
material advantages remained with the enemy.

Liprandi was still in possession of the Causeway
Heights, and a Turkish standard and seven English

* " Our Veterans," page 255. — Colonel Wilson.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 221

guns had fallen into his hands, while loss of control of 1854
the Woronzoff Road proved more serious than could
possibly at that time have been foreseen. This metalled
highway to the Upland had been of the utmost use,
especially for the transport of heavy munition. The
improvised Commissariat Transport Service had trudged
up and down upon it every hour of the day and night.
As winter advanced the other road, from Balaklava
over the Col, became a track of slush and mud, where
th^ going at best was miserable toil, and often a dis-
tressing six miles fight with broken-down bullock carts,
the sickening hindrances of dead and dying mules,
and the scattered impedimenta of vanquished wayfarers.
And all the spoil that the devoted blue-jackets and ill-
fed soldiers secured at the port, was often no more than
a scanty supply of indifferent salt pork and weevilly
biscuit.

Balaklava was still in our possession, but means
had to be taken from an army which was diminished
to 16,000 bayonets* to guard it more closely. The
Sanspareil was ordered into port, and there were
even discussions about abandoning the town ; but Sir
Edmund Lyons energetically opposed this measure ;
Mr. Fielder even went so far as to say he could not
provision the army unless this base was retained, and
Lord Raglan acquiesced

Siege operations were continued at the front. In
the ships the booming of the guns of both sides could
be heard, and from the rate of firing supposition as to
what was taking place was frequent, but the incessant
noise must have been very irritating to those who could
only conjecture.

* "The Invasion of the Crimea," page 27, vol. v, — Kinglake,

222 I<ROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen, off Katcha River,

1st Nov., 1854.

November has come at last with a vengeance ; for three
days it has been blowing the heaviest gale I ever yet experi-
enced, and the weather is foggy and piercing, enlivened at
times, however, with bright gleams of sunshine. It is so cold
that, although I am sitting in a great coat, I am so chilled that
I can hardly hold my pen. What those poor fellows will do
at the camp it is difficult to say. John Adye was very well
three days ago, but some of my friends have been killed. Our
loss, with the exception of the cavalry affair which I mentioned
to you in my last, has, on the whole, been moderate since the
disastrous day of Alma. Of course since the gale we have had
no communication with the shore, and though fighting has
occurred every day, we do not know what has happened.
Nobody talks of anything now but the failure of the Expedi-
tion. I think that it will be easier work, and less loss, to make
a dash at Sevastopol, rather than to embark so large a force of
men and guns in the face of such a powerful enemy. On the
other hand, if the gale continues, we, in the Fleet, cannot take
part in the storming, and then the army will have the whole
of the north forts upon them as well as the batteries of the
southern side. If we have to give up the place it will be the
fault of the Government at home not having sufficiently pro-
vided men and stores in time. Would you believe it ? to this
hour the army have never received more than half the necessary
amount of powder, and we are daily sending them it from the
ships ! One thousand rounds for each gun is a very ordinary
supply for a siege, and 500 is the utmost the Ordnance have
despatched. This is a fact you may depend upon. Lord
Aberdeen and all the Ministry deserve to be hooted from their
posts. I even hope now, almost against hope, that a final
combined effort by sea and land may be found to be success-
ful. The cost will be more than it was six weeks ago, and few
will survive it. But if the work be done ?

I shall send this away as it is, having really nothing to tell
you, except that it is very cold. My best love to all. I wish
I had an hour a day at a fire to warm my bones. Do not
send out the Poncho I wrote for, I must buy a " Grego " at
Stamboul, or I shall be perished before the other comes.
Please forward the marmalade soon, for I live almost upon
bread. The meat is so bad and the butter so rancid that I am
nearly starved, but — I am ever yours affectionately.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 223

TO HIS FATHER.

November ist, 1854.
I had a letter from you yesterday. It is very unfortunate
that so many things miscarry, as our only hopes of enjoyment
consist in the parcels of books, etc., we get from England.
With this exception a man might as well be in Juan Fer-
nandez. The marmalade was for myself, as I can get nothing
to eat now except dry bread, salt meat, and onions. All our
supplies are stopped. In all probability we shall be here for
the next two years, and so I am desirous of not being famished.
The stationery is for my school. It is one of the regulations
of Government (and very properly so) that chaplains should
superintend the ships' schools, and the schoolmaster is under
their entire control, the naval instructor having nothing to do
in the matter. It is usual for chaplains to provide books and
stationery— I grant you a very hard regulation, but it is one
in full accordance with the usual liberality of the Admiralty,
who give the good things to those at the top of the tree
only ; not a single book is provided. I have a few the
S.P.C.K. gave me, and some I have purchased. We are
now quite out of copy-books, ink, slate pencils, and the various
things I wrote for, and are this week at a dead stop. It
vexes me a good deal, for people look to the chaplain (who
" has little to do for his little pay ! ") to keep the school going.
I was much interested in your account of the Russian
damsel who has been visiting you. The race is so mixed
that to speak of a Russian merely conveys the idea that the
person is a Russian subject. There is a good deal of Ger-
man blood amongst them. The true Muscovite is to be
detected only by — the smell ! This is supposed to be very rare
and peculiar, but, as the doctors say, " I never experienced it."
It is chiefly confined to the higher ranks, the Imperial family,
the Gortschakoffs, the Menschikoffs, et omne quod exit in " off."
I suppose it would be complimentary to speak of the " ancient
and fish-like smell " which attaches to a Russian man of
family. We say a man " looks like a gentleman," but I sup-
pose it would be correct in these parts to say a man " smelt
like a prince." I am not quite sure that the theological
expression, " the odour of sanctity," did not take its rise in
this land of holiness, Te Deums, and twaddle. If ever I marry
a Russian lady I will have satisfactory evidence that she is
strictly of the plebeian order, if possible, of English and German
stock. What think you ? — Ever affectionately yours.

224 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
Off the Katcha,
Nov. 3rd, 1854.

Things are still in statu quo. This " statu quo " is the
greatest abomination in nature, especially when the weather is
cold and the nature impatient. The preservation of the
" statu quo " was the rock upon which diplomatists split before
the war, and the keeping of this in its miserable integrity, is
the agony of generals and the disorder of statesmen. It has
been blowing a strong gale from the N.E., and we have had no
communications even with each other, much less with the
army. The weather is piercingly cold, although for the last
two days we have had it dry and bright. One could be as
healthy as a trout with plenty of exercise, and just the smell of
a fire at nights. My friend Eber, who has taken up his
quarters here, has gone to Balaklava to-day, as the wind has
moderated a little, to try and pick up news. I wish he had
done so sooner, and then I might have sent you some intelli-
gence. Our wounded men who are sent back from the camp,
feel confident the Russians cannot hold out much longer, their
loss is so great ; but this is all nonsense, for reinforcements of
men and ammunition are poured in on the north side as fast as
they are " expended " on the south. We have not a sufficient
force you know to invest the town on all sides. No, I am con-
vinced the fearful alternative to the Allies is to give or take the
bayonet. And the sooner this is decided upon the better.
The assault is now said to be postponed another week.

We are longing for winter quarters, although there is a
strong probability that we anchor out here. I hope it will be
Stamboul, for then I shall " lionize " to my heart's content. I
am bent upon a trip to Palestine, which, situated as I am,
only requires money. I have the route laid out, for nearly all
around me have travelled there, and it is easier than I thought.
The only drawback will be that the season of the year will
shut up the Lebanon and its cedars to me. Still, I am
prevented from going at any other time by reason of my
occupation. Ever yours.

ONE OF THE NAVAL BRIGADE.

225

CHAPTER XIX.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
Off the Katcha,
6th Nov., 1854.
There was a terrible action fought yesterday. General
D'Osten Sacken has arrived from Odessa with 30,000 men,
and the whole of the Russian battalions attacked the English
position at daybreak. The action continued till noon, when
the Russians retired, having inflicted a great loss upon us, as,
with the exception of one French Division, we were the only
troops engaged. Sir George Cathcart, the hero of the Cape,
was shot through the heart, and five generals on our side
were severely wounded. We have lost a very large number of
officers and men, for the enemy stood well to their guns and
at one time had even captured five of ours. These were
eventually retaken by the cavalry. Our loss, as I have said,
is very large, but the full particulars will not be in our posses-
sion for some days. What John Adye's fate may be I do not
know. The lives of all are in the hands of God, and no
surprise is ever felt now at any casualty. He may be dead for
all I know, most probably is, as the artillery, I hear, suffered
more than usual. I dare say I shall be able to find out before
this letter goes. Two of my friends in the i ith Hussars were
killed in the cavalry action on the 25th. They were admirable
fellows, and I deeply regret them. Our guns are nearly worn

out, the touch-holes being ^s ~/^ so, and many of the

brass field pieces have dropped at the muzzle C~~W^ 77~\^

so, from heat and wear. This is often the case with light
brass guns, and makes them objectionable for heavy work.

2 26 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 Ammunition, provisions, everything runs short, except the
indomitable spirit of the men, who, like the Alpine Firs,
receive new life and spirit from every gash of the woodman's
axe.

I have no hope myself of our reducing Sevastopol, at least
this year, but I do trust that Lord Raglan will brave even the
heavy odds yesterday brought against him, and will fight to
the last man. Reinforcements are promised us, but they will
come too late, like the ship loads of nurses, sago and arrow-
root, which the good people of England are sending out in
such haste for the benefit of those who are now either well, or
but masses of corruption in their last resting places. The
more one thinks of it the more indignation burns against the
solemn stupidity, or apathy, or treachery of those who doomed
a gallant army to inactivity and miserable death, instead of
promptly supplying them with stores, ammunition, and all the
provisions for fighting, and for flinging them against Sevastopol
the moment the first note of war was heard. Had this been
the case the day had been our own ; the cause of Justice
triumphant ; and 20,000 men in health and strength. Now
many families are needlessly in sorrow ; our enemy scorns us ;
and both army and navy begin to be shaded in gloom.
However, here we are. It is no use repining ; although the
expression of our indignation will find utterance, you may be
sure that not a single individual in either service will flinch
from his post. The hills of the Crimea and the bays of
Sevastopol will be stained this winter with a deeper shade
than their accustomed snpw.

Few, few will part where many meet.
The snow will be their winding sheet.
And every turf beneath our feet
Will be a soldier's sepulchre ;

but visible to all is the noble and cheerful spirit of every
victim who has been, and will be, sacrificed on the altar of
political apathy or duplicity.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Nov. 7th, 1854.
I think I mentioned to you, in one of my late letters, that
the Himalaya was supposed to be lost. I am happy to say

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 227

that such is not the case. She is still in existence at 1854
Balaklava, although rendered almost useless and quite unfit
to go to sea. The gales which last week and the week before
swept the ^Egean and the Euxine, have not spent themselves
without very serious damage. Two Egyptian frigates have
been lost at the very jaws of the Bosphorus, and the French
steamer Ganges, taking to England the mail of the 30th, has
been wrecked off Tenedos. This last misfortune will deprive
our friends at home of many interesting letters. I hear you
have been enjoying yourself once more at Jenner Marshall's.
I wish I had been with you !

I have as yet been able to glean but few particulars of the
engagement on Sunday. That it was more severe than Alma,
and of longer duration, we could satisfy ourselves at this
distance. The loss has not been so great on our part as we at
first heard, but report does not mention any diminution in the
supposed loss to the Russians. Our Turkish Allies did nothing
but strip and mutilate the dead. It is quite true that after
running away in the affair of the 25 th, they passed through
the tents of the 42nd (who were fighting on the ground they
had deserted) and robbed them of three days' rations. A
captain of a transport has just told me, that when at
Eupatoria, on Sunday, he saw the Turks dragging the dead
body of a Russian soldier at the tail of a horse. I really think
the generals of the French and English armies should put
down this barbarity with a strong hand. It is a reflection
upon us, and our enemies will not fail to make the most of it.
Sir De Lacy Evans is wounded and on board the flag ship
since the action of the Sth. The Duke of Cambridge is also
hors de combat for a time from loss of blood. General Cathcart
was shot on the field, and General Strangways has died of his
wounds. You see I am sending you disjointed particulars
relating to two actions, but I hope to be able to gather more
information for you before the post goes. These casualties,
however, all relate to the action of the 5 th.

November %th. — Letters go immediately, so I must hurry
this over. The affair of the 5 th is called the battle of the
Inkerman, from the valley in which it was fought. I enclose
you a list of the killed and wounded, as accurate as can be
obtained at present. I have made anxious enquiries about
John Adye, but I can learn nothing of him ; as good news is
often in silence, I hope it may be so now. I cannot get an
hour's leave to go to Balaklava, as we are expected daily to

15*

228 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 engage again at any risk. It is hard to have missed the place
by one week. Oh for 30,000 men of the army of Boulogne !
but d, la guerre comme a la guerre. If we cannot take the place
we, as schoolboys say, have given them a good "licking."
The rest is the fortune of war. Still we are firing desperately
to-day, and I hope shall hold out yet. The 46th arrived
yesterday in the Prince. " We don't recollect " anything that
has occurred, and trust that their conduct now will wipe off
dishonour. I must stop no longer.
Kindest love.

Ever affectionately yours.

[The 46th Regiment was at the time under a cloud,
and the above refers to a certain Court Martial, when
each officer cited as a witness invariably replied : " I do
not recollect." It thus acquired the name of the Nok
mi recordo Regiment. Happily the cloud has long since
blown over.

Surely the 46th expiated everything that in the past
had been laid to its charge, when it was on duty " no less
than six nights out of seven," and, doubtless, exposed to
all the inclemency of the weather, and to frequent bullets
also. To have been in constant danger of an enemy in
the dark, and, instead of clashing swords, the dread of
shattering musketry fire, without even the shrift of one
whole-hearted, clean back-stroke, was a sorry fate which
might well wipe out any sort of rumour.]

BATTLE OF THE INKERMAN,

November 5 th, 1854.
Killed:—

Lieut. -General Sir G. Cathcart.
Brigadier-General Goldie.
Brigadier-General Strangways.
Brigadier-General Adams.
Brigadier-General Torrens.

Wounded : —

Lieut.-General Sir G. Brown.
Brigadier-General BuUer.
Major-General Bentinck.
Brigadier-General Eyre.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 229

GRENADIER GUARDS.
Killed:—

Lieut.-Colonel E. W. Pakenham
Capt. Hon. H. A. Neville.
Capt. Sir R. L. Newman.

Wounded : —
Capt. A. Tipping.
Lieut. C. N. Sturt.
Lieut. Sir J. Fergusson.

COLDSTREAM GUARDS.

Killed : — •

Lieut.-Colonel Hon. T. V. Dawson.
Lieut. -Colonel J. C. M. Cowell.
Capt. L. D. Mackinnon.
Capt. Hon. G. C. C. Eliot.
Capt. H. M. Bouverie.
Capt. F. H. Ramsden.
Lieut. E. A. Disbrowe.
Lieut. C. H. Greville.

Wounded : —
Lieut.-Colonel Hon. G. Upton.
Lieut.-Colonel Jas. Halkett.
Lieut.Colonel Lord Aug. C. L. Fitzroy.
Capt. Hon. P. R. B. Fielding.
Lieut. Hon. W. Archer Amherst.

SCOTS FUSILIER GUARDS.

Killed.—

Lieut.-Colonel Francis Seymour.

Capt. AUix, A.D.c. to Sir De Lacy Evans.

Wounded dangerously :—
Major E. Wal. F. Walker.
Lieut.-Colonel J. Hunter Blair.

Wounded : —
Capt. and Adjutant H. F. H. Drummond.
Capt. R. Gipps.
Capt. F. Baring.

7TH FOOT

Major Sir Thos. St. Vincent H. Cochrane Troubridge, lost
both legs.

230 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

4 1 ST FOOT.

Killed :■ —

Lieut.-Colonel Carpenter.

63RD FOOT.

Kt'lled .—

Lieut.-Colonel E. S. T. Swyny.

68th foot.
Killed : —

Major H. G. Wynne.
Lieut. T. Grote Barker.

RIFLE BRIGADE.

Killed .—

Captain Cartwright.

Wounded : —
Lieut. Coote Buller.

17TH LANCERS.
Wounded : —
Cornet A. Clevland.
Captain Clifton, A.D.C. to the Duke of Cambridge.

Only Brigade of Guards and Rifles given, other returns not
sent me.

2,000 men kors de combat.

97 officers wounded, 25 killed.

A report exists that the Duke of Cambridge has been
wounded, and is on board the Sanspareil, but this needs
corroboration.

No one seems to understand how the action commenced.
The Russians debouched suddenly from the valley of the
Inkerman and attacked the British rear, who were unprepared
for them, and at first retired, leaving several guns in the
hands of the enemy. These were afterwards recaptured by
the heavy cavalry. The British soon rallied and returned
upon their footsteps, and after many hours' fighting repulsed
the Russians with great loss. The Guards behaved splendidly.
One French division was engaged and fought with their usual
success. The General penetrated into Sevastopol in repulsing

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 231

a sortie of the garrison, but was killed as he retreated. The

firing continues to-day (8th) with greater impetuosity than
ever.

TO HIS FATHER.
H.M.S. Queen,

1 2th November, 1854.

Matters have been very quiet since this day week. When
I say, quiet, I mean that there has been no great battle,
although a heavy cannonade has been kept up every day. It
is said, ten thousand allied troops have arrived this week ; but
I believe the total to be over-rated. At all events, it is pretty
certain that a good number has come, sufficient to strengthen
the rear guard, and allow more men to be pushed to the front.
The attack is put off sine die, that is to say, it is abandoned
unless some unforeseen circumstances produce an effect which
will enable us to carry the place by a sudden assault ; such
circumstances as, for instance, the arrival of 30,000 men from
the moon ; the simultaneous blowing up of all the Russian
magazines, batteries, and ships ; or the death from drinking
of all the Russian officers ! Then, I think, we might take
Sevastopol. It is pretty certain that we shall winter here,
without fires or bulkheads. Ugh ! Still, it is not worse than
the fate of the officers and men in the trenches and camp,
except that they can take warm exercise and we cannot.
Huts are being made for the reception of the troops during
the winter months. Reinforcements are said to be on the
road for the Russians to the amount of 60,000 men. If so, it
will make them 130,000 to our 70,000. With such odds we
must go down. A fatal mistake was made in allowing the
Austrians to occupy the Principalities and paralyse the Turks.
The Danubian army of Russia is now upon us, instead of
distributing its favours to Omar Pasha. Had he been allowed
to proceed, the event would not have been so doubtful.

Our Captain of Marines (March) has been sent home badly
wounded ; he was in the front this day week, and in the
engagement received a ball under the right ear, which came
out of his mouth, scoring the inside of the cheek in its passage.
The jaw is slightly fractured, and some of the auricular nerves
cut, so that his mouth is twisted on one side and his beauty
gone for ever. However, we are very thankful that he is
progressing favourably, and will soon be at home. He was
picked up for dead, but may, after all, be not much the worse,

232 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

except weak and disfigured sadly. I have heard nothing
of John Adye, but suppose him to be well.
Kindest love to my mother and the children.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

13th November, 1854.
No news has reached us since the battle of Inkerman,
except a few particulars of that blood-stained field. Night
attacks constantly occur, but what they are we do not know.
Last night a furious affair took place, which lasted half-an-
hour, and then suddenly ceased. I have made every enquiry
about John Adye's fate, and presume him to be alive ; an
official of his importance would be mentioned if killed.
Probably you know by this time. The Quartermaster-
General does not seem disposed to furnish the Fleet with very
accurate information. In the dark in the battle of the 5 th,
the Russians surprised the pickets and made a dash at our
lines, hoping to seize them and intrench themselves in force
upon the heights we now occupy. The struggle was very
obstinate and bloody, no quarter being shown on either side.
At one time the Guards were entirely surrounded, and they
formed back to back, the front rank defending themselves
with the bayonet, and the rear rank clubbing their muskets.
There they stood like a wall of adamant until supported by
fresh troops. They lost a great many men as you may
suppose, and their firmness and gallantry have earned from
all the highest praise. The Russians exasperate our men by
the cowardly trick they practise of pretending to be wounded,
and then destroying those who come to relieve them. But
the British soldier's blood is up, and no mercy will be shown
from this time forward. Unfortunately many cases of
treachery have occurred that it is now known, or believed, to be
a system. It is a terrible feature in Christian warfare, is it
not? I will give you an instance of Russian barbarity.
Captain Peel, of the Diamond, a son of the late Sir Robert,
was talking to a friend during the action, when a shot knocked
over the friend and smashed his leg. " Peel," he said, as he
lay on the ground, " you will come and see me when the
affair is over." " Yes, certainly," replied the other, and moved
off to his post in the batteries. When the fight was nearly
done, and the Russians had been almost driven in. Captain
Peel, now relieved from duty, went to pick up his wounded

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 233

friend. He found him dead, with both his arms pinned to
the ground with a bayonet, and his eyes torn out ! This so
shocked and exasperated poor Peel, that, in the agony of his
heart, he mounted his horse and rode through the ranks,
bidding them spare none, himself setting the example by
destroying ten or twelve with his own hand. I tell you this
as it was told to me, without vouching for its truth or
inaccuracy. I myself believe it, as it came from a source I
rely upon, but so many tales of horror upon the subject
circulate from mouth to mouth, that one is willing and desirous
to disbelieve some. The fact is certain, that "war to the
knife " is now the cry, and I am quite convinced in my own
mind, from what I know of our customs of war (of the
natural humanity inherent in the breast of every Englishman
and further strengthened by practice and the precepts of
education, added to the memory of the many acts of kindness
I saw lavished upon our enemies at Alma), I am quite certain
that internecine warfare would never be sanctioned, unless its
horrors, so repugnant to our English natures, were made
imperative by the fearful necessity of the case.

The weather is very bad, heavy gales of wind, only varied
by iioods of rain. Our poor fellows suffer dreadfully. I
myself have got rid of my fever, and have now an inflammation
in my eyes, which is the result of climate. My eyelids are so
swollen that I can hardly see. However, this is nothing.
Kindest love to all. Give my best congratulations to
Feltham.

Ever, my dear mother, affectionately yours.

I heard to-day that there is again a probability of my
going as chaplain to the camp. I am, indeed, anxious to be
there, but my spirits are so low that I almost fear, feeling ill,
to encounter wet, cold, and hunger. This, of course, is a
species of cowardice ; if I am sent I shall pluck up heart, and
doubtless do very well. Kindest love to all.

234

CHAPTER XX.

•Another great conflict had indeed been fought, though
it is evident the Fleet was furnished, as usual, with
only the most meagre details. The Quartermaster-
General, doubtless, had his hands full enough of work
which must have had more serious and imperative
claims than the despatch of complete accounts of the
quickly-succeeding, disastrous incidents that were
taking place on land.*

Unfortunately, the fulfilment of the Oriental proverb,
" When the battle is won, see that the edge of your
sword is keen ! " was frustrated by death and disease in
the interval between the 25th October and the fatal
day of Inkerman. The unsuccessful sortie from
Sevastopol of the 26th had given the enemy an
accurate idea of the undefended condition of the north-
west portion of the Chersonese, which actually invited
attack, especially to such a superior force as now was
his. Sir John Burgoyne had harassed the defence here,
and Sir de Lacy Evans had urged the necessity for
entrenchments, and for investing the works that should
be prepared on this part of the position taken up
by the Allies, but the Commander-in-Chief was too
grievously pressed for men to complete the business
of the siege to accede, and, consequently, the open
ground was guarded only by picquets.

* The Sailors' camp kept in as close touch as possible with the ships. In the
log of the Queen are frequent entries which show this: "4th November.
Gunners filling cartridges for the Naval Brigade. " On the following day the
heavy firing at Inkerman was distinctly heard by the crews of the Fleets.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 235

There appears to be no satisfactory answer to a 1854
question which frequently presents Itself in the study of
the campaign : Why was it not a condition, insisted
upon by the Governments concerned, that, in the
earlier stages, instead of a mere paltry contingent, a
great Turkish army, officered by Europeans, and fed
by the Sultan, should take part in their struggle against
Russian aggression ? Foresight might have saved the
lives of thousands of our soldiers, for, with a sufficiency
of hard-working Mussulmen, guns of heavy calibre
could have been placed so well to the front, at the
beginning of operations in the Crimea, that the
strengthening of the outworks of Sevastopol, which
fronted the Allies, might have been continually harassed,
if not altogether prevented.

A few extracts from Sir Evelyn Wood's terse and
comprehensive description of the ground whereon the
struggle for Inkerman took place, will help the reader
to realise more clearly the complex and terrible scenes'
that were enacted there : —

" The Sandbag Battery, round which the Russians
and English struggled so desperately, had no guns in it,
they having been removed to Balaklava after they had
crushed an opposing battery, which the Russians
erected on the real Inkerman heights, north of the
Tchernaya river, for the hills we call Inkerman have no
name known to the Russians. The position of the
Sandbag Battery was, however, of some tactical value,
for immediately below it the ground drops rapidly for
forty yards, and then falls almost precipitously to the
Tchernaya valley. This ledge, therefore, was important
as affording a foothold to assailants or defenders, and
each side held it alternately. The battery stood at the
north-east shoulder of what Mr. Kinglake terms, the
' fore ridge of the Inkerman crest.' This crest line
runs east and west, and is nearly level for half a mile,
being bisected by the road, which comes up from the

236 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 head of the harbour, through the Quarry Ravine, and as
it emerges on the open ground, runs nearly north and
south. At about four hundred yards from the road as
it passes over the crest, the ground falls rapidly to
either side. To the west it descends to a branch of
the Careenage Ravine, and to the east it sinks to the
steep edge of the upland overlooking the Tchernaya
valley. The ' Fore Ridge ' extends four hundred yards
north of the crest, and to the east of the road, with a
gentle upward slope of one in sixty from the crest to
the northward, equal to a rise of twenty feet. Then
from the north end of the Fore Ridge the ground falls
for three hundred yards, at a gradient of one in ten,
and at this lower point is the ledge on which the Sand-
bag Battery stands.

" From the crest-line of our position the ground to
the westward of the ' Fore Ridge ' falls gently for four
hundred yards northwards to the head of the Quarry
Ravine, up which the post road is engineered, rising
nine hundred feet from the valley, in curves to obtain
gradients possible for loaded vehicles. We always had
a picquet just where the road leaves the ravine, and
across the road the picquets had built with loose stones
a low wall. This extended into the scrub on either
side, and was called "the Barrier." The Russians
were constantly on the British side of this obstacle
during the battle, but except for half-an-hour, about
nine a.m., it was, nevertheless, held by us all through
the day, even when the enemy had got farther to the
southward. The Sandbag Battery stands five hundred
yards east of the head of the Quarry Ravine, but out
of sight of travellers emerging from it, being hidden by
the spine of the ' Fore Ridge,' and at two hundred and
fifty yards, or half-way, the head of a lesser ravine juts
in, thus rendering difficult any advance by a formed
line from north to south. Westwards of the Post Road
exit from the Quarry Ravine, the ground is fairly level
for three hundred yards, when it falls into another

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 237

branch of the Careenage Ravine, distinct from that 1854
which bounds the crest-line on its western side.

" From about the head of the Quarry Ravine the
ground rises gently to the northward for eight hundred
yards, where on the highest part (called by us Shell
Hill) there is still (1895) a redoubt, erected in the
spring of 1855. It is thirty feet below the crest of the
English position. From Shell Hill spurs run out,
sloping down to either side, but not so steeply but that
they afforded the Russian artillery a frontage on a
North-East, South-West line, of three quarters of a mile.
When the infantry advanced, however. Southwards, its
front was narrowed to the three hundred or four
hundred yards lying between the branch of the Careen-
age Ravine and the Post Road ; and to get to the East-
ward, the Russian troops must either have crossed the
Quarry Ravine, or have moved to a flank under close
fire of our picquets. All the ground was covered by a
low coppice of stunted oaks, and, except where it was
nearly level, by large boulders, or crags." *

Kinglake states that the slope between the brow of
the Kitspur and the Barrier " went by the name of the
Gap."

Only a lengthened and minute account of each of the
terrible attacks of the 5th November, 1854, could
convey an adequate idea of the fierce character, and
pitifully unequal conditions, that beset the defenders of
the Allied position : a mere tyro in knowledge of
military matters must confess to the difficulties pre-
sented by the numerous technical descriptions from
which the following general outline has been evolved.

The camp nearest to Mount Inkerman was that of
the and Division, whose picquets did duty on the
ground soon to be so hardly contested. Sir de Lacy
Evans, commanding this Division, having fallen with

* " The Crimea in 1854 and 1894," Chapter IX.

238 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 his horse on the 29th, and at this time being on board
ship at Balaklava, its temporary leader was General
Pennefather. If " valour is the chief est virtue," then,
for a few dread hours on the 5th November, heroic
virtue did not lack a stalwart exponent, even though,
paradoxical as it may seem, Pennefather's one and only
thought was to spread death and devastation around.
The ruthless impulses which frequently sway mankind,
as well as all the gravest facts concerning human con-
duct, are alike shrouded in mystery ; but that the curse
of warfare should have survived the Christian era, and
that so primitive and gross a way of settling inter-
national differences should still be the approved method
of civilised beings, is a problem which baffles and be-
wilders all who seek its solution.*

In the rear of the 2nd Division was the Guards'
camp, for the Guards' Brigade were the supporters of
this Division from attacks on the north, as well as the
watchers towards the east. The position of Bosquet's
army of observation lay "along the edge of the
Chersonese from the Woronzoff Road to the Col."t

Vinoy and his whole brigade, and battalions of
Turks, were now in readiness for the defence of Bala-
klava. Lushington's brigade was engaged "on the
siege batteries, but the reserve was stationed near the
head of the Victoria Ridge, and its camp guard had
lately been supplied with three hundred rifles." |

The loth and nth Russian Divisions had marched
from Odessa, and Prince Mentschikoff, who had esta-
blished his headquarters near the mouth of the Tcher-
naya, had an immense field army now at his command.

*■ History might furnish an answer : For nineteen centuries so absolute has
been the distortion of our Lord's te8u:hing of fundamental truth, that its benumb-
ing effect has paralysed the moral apprehension of the nations, else why should
the recently raised question of European disarmament have universally met only
with that mild tolerance bordering on contempt, which is the natural outcome of
a tottering conscience and a nebulous faith ?

t " Invasion of the Crimea," vol. v., page 40. — Kinglake.

\ Ibid, vol. v., page 38.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 239

Sevastopol reinforced, he formulated a great scheme to 1854
strike a final blow at the most vital and vulnerable
corner of the invaders' position, the avowed purpose
being to exterminate the Allies, or to drive them back
to the sea. Their " complete disaster " and " exemplary
chastisement," however, did not accrue in the manner
predicted by Prince Mentschikoff 's letter to the Governor
of Warsaw, though the sons of the Tsar, the Grand
Dukes Michael and Nicholas, had arrived at the seat
of war to make the projected victory appear of greater
importance.

It was planned that General Siomonoff and General
Pauloff, each with his enormous battalions, should con-
verge on Shell Hill, when they would be joined by the
renowned General Dannenberg, who was then to direct
the operations. Forty thousand troops and one hundred
and thirty-five guns, divided between Siomonoff, who
was to proceed from the Karabel Faubourg, and Pauloff
from the old City Heights, made up a stupendous force
that, if numbers were all, certainly gave hope of success.

Prince Gortschakoff had assumed the command of
Liprandi's army, which was daily augmented by vast
artillery and troops of infantry, and numbered, on the
5th, 22,000 soldiers of all arms, with eighty-eight guns.

Prince Mentschikoff had evidently rehearsed his
scheme, with all its details, so confidently in his own
mind that certainty appeared to him inevitable.

Kinglake states that the number (gathered from
Russian sources) of the enemy's troops operating on
the open field on the day of Inker man, with the "force
guarding the road," amounted to 71,841. The English
infantry " which, sooner or later, were present on Mount
Inkerman the day of the battle, numbered 7,464 ; " the
French infantry 8,219. We had also what was left of
the Light Brigade, about 200. " The French also
brought up 700 cavalry."

According to the above authority, the Anglo-French
army at this time consisted of 65,000 men, with 11,000

240 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 Turkish auxiliaries, while the Russian force was com-
puted at 120,000.

The boundary of the Allied position, extending about
twenty miles, had to be watched and defended all along
the line. The enemy was free to attack when and
where he chose, and his means of increasing numbers,
in any direction, were ample. The Allies had abso-
lutely no reserves, each brigade, at this date, having an
inadequate strength, and the troops generally not in
good fighting condition. The Russians were well aware
of the lack of defence in the north-east, and this know-
ledge was, doubtless, a temptation, though, ere the day
ended, they proved how ignorant they themselves were
of the character of the very ground which they had
chosen for the struggle.

As stated in Kelson Stothert's recent letters, the
weather had already become wintry. In the wet mist,
following the night of rain, on this early Sunday morn-
ing, there was loud ringing of bells in Sevastopol ; free
drinking of vodki to induce valour ; and much blessing
of troops, accepted as a sacred promise of victory.
Unprepared by any warning, sleep reigned in the camp
of the 2nd Division. The oncoming of thousands was
not indicated ; a rumbling in the valley was all the
alarm the picquets had ; their long, dreary watch of the
night had not been disturbed by any special sound of
approach. It must be confessed that the British were
taken by surprise (as they have often been before and
since Inkerman) in the only corner where they were
absolutely unprotected. The rumbling was made by
artillery moving towards the valley ; soon this was fol-
lowed by the forts of Sevastopol opening fire on the
entrenchments and defences of the Allies, when the
hideous noise of ordnance in the mist seemed to pro-
ceed from all quarters.

***** *

General Codrington, on the Victoria Ridge, is up
betimes this misty morning, and, returning from the

JPROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 241

Lancaster Battery, hears sharp musketry fire across the 1854
Careenage Ravine, and knows danger is threatening
the picquets of the 2nd Division ; he gets his own brigade
quickly under arms, and holds the Ridge during the long
hours while the terrible fight is proceeding. Three com-
panies from BuUer's brigade (its camp a mile and a-half
from that of the 2nd Division) are also brought, during
the action,* to aid in safe-guarding this Ridge. The part
of Mentschikofif's scheme, which included an attack
here from 20,000 infantry and thirty-eight guns,f is,
happily, not carried out, and, though the Lancaster gun
is subjected to a severe enfilading fire, Codrington
stoutly defends his position, and, as the enemy's troops
try to scale the sides of the gorge, they are furiously
driven back at the point of the bayonet.

Siomonoff, advancing by a way not planned, meets
only picquets of the 2nd Division, and is not long in
establishing twenty -two of his guns on Shell Hill.
General Pennefather sends out small bodies to rein-
force the picquets, for it must be remembered that,
" for the earlier stages of the battle, he has, in all, with
six hundred and forty-nine of the Light Division and
six guns of Townsend's battery, only a force of 3,600
infantry and eighteen guns.|

That gruesome march in the shrouding mist proved
the last for hundreds of the brave, doomed fellows in
those silent grim companies ! General Adams, with
the "forties," moves up to the central and most im-
portant point of the position to be defended, the
Sandbag Battery. Except for its natural advantage
— the ground dropping from the ledge and sloping
to the valley of the Tchernaya — it is not a position of
any defensive value, because nothing had been done to
make it so ; but the men are eager to reach it, and, to

* " The War in the Crimea," page 139. — General Sir Edward Hamley, K.C.B.
t "Invasion of the Crimea," vol. v., page 84. — Kinglake.
X Ibid, vol. v., page 138.

242 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 the death, passionately in earnest about not yielding an
inch of it up to the enemy.

The enemy's cannon are firing volleys from Shell
Hill, and Siomonoff further advances some infantry,
who, meeting a wing of the 49th, are repulsed. Other
battalions come on which take three ill-to-be-spared
British guns.*

The contest is becoming fierce, for now the enemy is
reinforced by Paulofif' s army, which, though its magni-
tude is not visible to the British troops, covers the
ground from the Post Road in the Quarry Ravine right
on to the Sandbag Battery. A very weak wing of the
30th and the 41st regiments "runs at these masses and
routs them." f

Siomonoff is killed, as well as many of his senior
officers. The dismay which some of his troops
experience is partly attributable to the remembrance
that they lost numerous comrades at Alma, though the
vigour with which they are met by their foe may
well fill them with a salutary despondency.

General Pennefather on the Ridge with his own
Brigade, the 30th, 55th and 95th Regiments, is giving
fight to the oncoming battalions, but the murderous fire
of a long line of artillery (before the fighting begins to
wane the enemy has between eighty and ninety well-
placed guns in battery) is raking the ranks of the
defenders of the crest with terribly telling effect, and
this destructive fire reaches even the camp on the slope
behind, and kills the poor tethered horses, as well as
scattering disaster around. \ Gorschakoff, performing
feints in the valley, delays the Guards advancing to the
help of the sorely pressed Second Division. Though
battle, murder and sudden death are, by no means,
confined to any single spot, the actual heart of the
contest is Mount Inkerman, where, for possession of

* These guns were subsequently left on the field.

t "The Crimea in 1854 and 1894," page 141. — General Sir Evelyn Wood.

\ "The War in the Crimea," page 141. — General Sir E. Hamley.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 243

the Sandbag Battery, the troops on both sides fling 1854
themselves into the demoniac struggle with a kind of
awful eagerness.

Dannenberg arrives before eight o'clock to command
Pauloff's battalions ; their fighting quality proves more
resolute than has yet been encountered ; but their lack
of exact knowledge of the uneven conformation of the
ground near the points of defence, impedes the quick
and orderly movement of such large bodies of troops.
The limited space renders tactical manceuvres impos-
sible ; the enemy's numerical superiority is of little
advantage, the crowding together on the plateau
resulting in the direst confusion.

The mist lies heavy in the valleys, shrouding the
troops, and thus the combatants are misled, for they
cannot possibly descry what is only a few yards ahead ;
and are quite unable to compute the numbers to which
they are giving battle. For the Allies this is a fortunate
circumstance, as the Russians must imagine that the
determined opposition made to every onslaught can be
justified only by the mist-hidden presence of strong
supports, which, in reality, do not exist ; probably this
mistake is actually preventing their annihilation.
General Adams's brave troops have already sent back a
body of Russian infantry, but at length, by sheer force
of numbers, they have to evacuate the Battery.

Pauloffs battalions are numerically overwhelming,
but the Guards are coming on and the position is
not given up.

The awful resistance which is now made has no
precedent in the annals of warfare. The enemy crowds
in dense masses up the slope, unseen till at close
quarters, the Minie thinning their ranks as they
approach, though, as the soldiers fall, their places are
immediately filled ; they advance over the dead bodies
of their comrades, advance to find a foe emerging from
the mist, with a lust for blood strangely transfiguring
his kindly, impassive, British countenance.

16*

244 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 The officers endeavour to keep the troops together,
but in this "soldiers' battle" the rank and file seem
instinctively to apprehend what is required of them ;
there occur some slight mistakes, mostly heroic. No
ordinary formation is practicable ; and when the few
hundred Grenadiers, followed by the Scots Fusiliers,
arrive, they have to encounter 7,000 of the enemy,
who, for the moment, have ousted the English out of
the Sandbag Battery ; the advantage is quickly turned,
though the confusion and carnage are indescribable.

It is the sheer power of numbers that to-day gives
to this determined enemy even a momentary victory.
Amid the terrible slaughter up come the Scots
Fusiliers, led by Colonel Walker. The Battery
without a banquette is almost useless, but the soldiers
pertinaciously cling to it as if it were a shrine their foe
was trying to desecrate. The Grenadiers are stung to
desperation by the failing of their cartridges ; Colonel
Walker sends a company to drive out the exultant
Russians, which is effectually done, but the column,
pressed down, reforms, and comes up in terrible
strength, so that Walker has to give command to charge.
The Fusiliers drive them back to the death that is wait-
ing them over the parapet and down the steep.

General Pennefather, defending the Home Ridge,
now gives up some of his troops to aid the Guards, and
the enemy is finding that, jammed together, his over-
powering numbers are not leading to victory.

The din and tumult have spread ; companies are
accepting battle wherever they chance to meet, but
the troops of both armies, advancing in detachments
in the smoke and fog, under incessant fire, are
shorn of much of their pride and strength before the
actual encounters begin. The wreck and devastation
are not confined to the central position ; all round is
there fighting, and the slaughter is appalling. The
crack of rifles and noise of belching guns, shot and
shell spreading death and havoc on every side, and with

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 245

no knowledge, while the mist lies thick, of where the 1854
enemy will next appear, have turned the soldier's world
to-day into a shambles, where assuredly the carnage
might well have glutted even a leader in old Judea,
and would certainly have been only consistent with the
desperation of peoples who never knew the Shibboleth
of the Cross.

Sir de Lacy Evans hurries up from Balaklava
directly he hears of the battle, but does not take over
the command of the 2nd Division ; when he returns
to the port it is as one of the wounded.

Sir George Cathcart, whose Division (the 4th) has
been broken up and mostly pushed forward wherever
they were thought to be wanted on the ground, now
looking intently through a field-glass, decides to attack
a battalion of the Selinghinsk ascending the slope.
Had he closed the Gap, as Lord Raglan directed, the
troops would not be subjected to be taken in reverse,
as, alas ! they are with their numbers sadly diminishing :
General Torrens is dangerously wounded, and brave
Cathcart shot dead. Hemmed in the hollow, the
strength of men who have not tasted food since
yesterday, may well seem spent.

The almost impossible points at which defence is
absolutely necessary are increasing, for this breaking
up of the line of resistance introduces a new element,
and there follow numerous onsets and confusion, in
which is realised how bitter is the mockery of " the
pomp and circumstance of glorious war" — to its vic-
tims. What a horrifying meaning the words convey
here, among the mutilated and the dying huddled
together, trodden upon ; here, where brave men have
to leave their post to be stretcher-bearers to gallant
leaders who can ill be spared. Sudden cannonading
cuts short many of these attempts to find the rear.

The rattle of the Minie, and the clash of steel never
cease, and, stupendous as is the power of the Russian
Artillery, our shot and shell appear to be more deadly.

246 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 The Guards fight like — like themselves, against a stern
and resolute foe. As battalion after battalion presses
them, and, gaining momentary advantage, sways them
out of the Battery, they gather fresh courage to resist ;
mounting on the dead and dying bodies covering the
ground, they hold their position with wild determina-
tion. In the ghastly conflict hundreds are perishing
because there is now no one who can convey them
from the struggle. The stretcher-bearers have nearly
all themselves become the wounded.

Tenacity, invincible bravery, and the moral force
resulting from discipline, keep the Guards steadfast
and unyielding. Colonel Walker, wounded for the
third time, is now disabled. The Battery is again in
possession of the Russians, when the " intrepid Cold-
streams " appear, but the infuriated Grenadiers and
Fusiliers, not wishing to be indebted even to them for
relief, rush upon the masses of the enemy and drive
them down the slope.

General Bosquet, early in the day, offered help in
a practical manner, but it was declined by Sir George
Brown and Sir George Cathcart. Lord Raglan anon
cancels this refusal, and Bosquet sends of his best to
aid the defenders of Mount Inkerman.* General
Bourbaki hastens to the aid of the Fusiliers when they
aref struggling to recover the summit, and, by this time,
officers are not so anxious about the order of battle as
to exterminate the troops opposed to them.

A sortie under Timovieff attacks the siege works of
the French on Mount Rodolph and spikes some of their
siege guns, but, having to retire, the French follow,
and Lourmel is killed.

The field is covered with the dying and the dead,
the awful debris of the morning's gallant army ; round

* Concerning the French aid, Lord George Paget somewhat laconically remarks :
" As usual, our fellows had to bear the brunt of it, though some French troops
came to our assistance at last." — "The Light Cavalry Brigade in the Crimea,"
page 81.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 247

shot and splinters of ball are mixed in ghastly con- 1854
fusion with mutilated limbs, and bodies crushed out of
all human shape ; features blackened and distorted ;
here and there a face whose familiar look is still serene ;
gay, glittering accoutrements, blood-stained and torn ;
manly forms lying in ghastliest helplessness with all the
terrible evidences of sudden misery ; the ground riven
and wrecked ; agony and death the absolute and undis-
puted sovereigns of a scene so degrading and heart-
breaking, that it can be likened to nothing save the
imaginable orgies of devils whose fiendish power is un-
controlled.

The strength of the Okhotsk corps, the power of
the Selenghinsk battalions, and the force of the Ta-
koutsk troops, have all been thrown against the few
determined hundreds, who, from hour to hour, have
held, though they have more than once been tempo-
rarily driven out of, the Sandbag Battery ; " the battle
is not to the strong"; notwithstanding the appalling
number of British slain, the Allies to-day are still
unvanquished. See the gallant Chasseurs d'Afrique
charging the enemy, who is endeavouring to retreat
under cover of his guns !

Sir George Brown is wounded and is being taken
down to the Agamemnon. Canrobert, too, is hurt in
the arm with a splinter of shell. Brave Adams is
mortally stricken. General Strangeways, on the knoll
where a group of horsemen with Lord Raglan are
intently watching, is also a victim, for the bursting of a
shell amongst the Staff is cruellest of all to him. " Will
someone be kind enough to lift me off my horse ? "
Major John Adye hastens to his side, and tenderly
supports him. And then is heard the pathetic request:
" Take me to the gunners ! let me die amongst them ! "

^ ■Jp fl( 7p iff

Mentschikoff's programme was comprehensive
enough ; in brief, victory by overwhelming dispro-
portionate masses of troops ; defeat ; annihilation ; the

248 FROM THE FLEET IN THE EIFTIES.

1854 siege ended ; ringing of bells again, and loud Te
Deums in every church of Holy Russia.

The programme is not fulfilled.

True, the dead lie in great masses all over the
ground between Shell Hill and the crest of Inkerman ;
thick are the heaps round the Sandbag Battery ; and
right down to the Barrier the corpses are clustered
together ; but the Russian slain far exceed in numbers
the British ; moreover, Dannenberg is routed, and the
decimated legions of the Tsar are retreating in bitter

humiliation.

* * * * »

An enormous disproportion in the numbers of the
combatants made the victory of Inkerman unique ;
the artillery power of the enemy also was vastly
greater than that of the British ; the disparity in
everything being in favour of the Russians. Many,
indeed, were the disadvantages under which the English
fought ; their poor numbers were grievously lessened
by those who had to carry away the wounded, and their
defensive power weakened by failure of ammunition at
the most critical period.

While prince and peasant, officers and men, showed
equal fervour, the impracticable condition for planning
attacks or defences, during the misty early morning,
was calamitous. Companies hurrying up had to engage
whatever battalions they encountered ; and well may
writers dwell upon the innumerable separate actions,
and the brave individual deeds, on this deadly field.
The charge of the 77th, the forcing of the retreat of the
Borodino Battalion, the sudden contests by ridge and
ravine, when neither opponent could descry in the sepa-
rating isolation of the mist, how great, or how small,
the body in front ; are they not all recorded in the pages
of the several military histories of this war ? Sir
Evelyn Wood states that when officers and non-com-
missioned officers fell, privates would gather under
some "natural and self-elected leader of men," and

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 249

immediately act with daring spirit and resolute zeal. 1854
It was told next day in the Naval Brigade that Captain
Peel had led seven separate attacks with these impro-
vised followers.

Young captains had to take command of battalions,
and, without preparation, to sustain incredible defences ;
men who had not tasted food since yesterday had to
slash and slay without breathing space. The lack of
food was ignored by these brave troops ; the lack of
ammunition, too, was grimly endured ; and the fighting
was stoutly persisted in even when the only weapon
was the club-end of the musket. Amid the thunder of
artillery, the rattle, clash, and din, the moans of the
wounded were maddening. And, when the stress of the
battle precluded care for the mutilated, it was not
strange that their involuntary groans should be mingled
with agonising prayers for the Great Deliverer.

25°

CHAPTER XXI.

"Another such victory would annihilate our suffi-
ciently reduced army," wrote Sir Arthur Blackwood
on the 8th November.* For many hours the sickening
scenes on the battlefield had continued. Bosquet sent
mule litters and 500 Turks to aid in conveying the
wounded down to the ships ; an agonising journey
under the best of conditions, but the rains, and much
traffic, having made the track unfit for ordinary trans-
port, the state of the sufferers, with their broken limbs
unset, and their gaping wounds undressed, rendered
them keenly susceptible to the inconceivable pain of
movement. On reaching Balaklava, there being no
provision for housing, many of the poor fellows had to
be laid on the ground till their turns came to be carried
on board. Even in the ships numbers had to He on
the decks during the voyage to Scutari, a hardship only
equalled by the heroic resignation displayed by all ;
well might Colonel Wilson, in writing of the fortitude
of these rank and file, remark : "A bullet through the
heart alone conquers such soldiers."

Humorous and sordid situations may be presented
even on a field of slaughter : caterers, French and
English, from messes where salt pork had been used to
satiety, were seen hunting round for generous slices of
horseflesh,! and no doubt these make-hay-while-the-

* " Life of Sir Arthur Blackwood, K.C.B.," page 72.

t " Eupatoria . . . the head is the delicacy of which none can be pro-
cured (in the market) except only in the morning." — "Lord G. Paget's Diary,
1854," page 134.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 251

sun-shines economists thoroughly believed in the truth 1854
of Whyte Melville's aphorism, " War's a mistake, but
dinner never deceives you."

The ghastly task of burying the dead occupied three
whole days, and even on the loth there were " heaps"
of Russians still upon the ground.*

One of the fatal results of the freedom of the
British Press at this time, was the disclosure of the
weakness of the Allied Armies. The Russians were,
by this means, kept fully informed of the almost
insuperable difficulty found even to maintain a defen-
sive attitude. The error was irretrievable. Had only
despatches been published, as in the days before that
ubiquitous individual, the war correspondent, was
abroad, conjecture, instead of certainty, must have
frequently misled the enemy.

Lord Raglan's position was now complicated in the
extreme, and he was also needlessly harassed. Having
to rely on a fast-diminishing force alone for the defence
of an extended front, the bitter knowledge that his
Government had imposed a task upon him for which it
had not counted the cost, must have galled his spirit
incessantly. Sternly self-repressed, he was too proud
to complain of an Ally, who, though brave enough, was
lagging and often impeding ; and who could always
proffer plausible excuse for not taking a fair share of
the work of the siege.

While waiting for supplies, which he would now be
compelled to do. Lord Raglan knew the enemy would
be strengthening his already almost invincible fortifica-
tions, and that meanwhile to expose the condition of
the troops, and the straits of their commanders, in the
newspapers, was calculated to augment their terrible
and increasing difficulties.

* " They must have fought with great bravery, as the embrasure of the Sandbag
Battery or Redoubt — for there were, alas ! no guns in it — was filled with the
corpses of men who had tried to creep through." — " Life of Sir Arthur Black-
wood," page 73.

252 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1 854 But the British Commander-in-Chief bore this trouble,
as he bore others — in silence.

Hemmed in by the enemy on the east, with a fortified
city to besiege on the north, the position of the Allied
Armies was becoming more and more critical ; nothing
of use was obtainable on the ground, and the out-
lying lands, where sheep and forage might have been
procured, were not in their possession, nor indeed
accessible to them.

Dependence was now solely upon the sea ; and on a
menaced port, where an unreasonable amount of traffic
would still have to be accomplished. Outgoing freights
of mutilated human beings, and eagerly- waited-for ship
loads of munitions, had no other harbour for embarka-
tion nor for landing.

When it was realised that till ammunition arrived
the siege would not be ended, experienced soldiers
could not shut their eyes to the miseries that must
ensue from having to maintain open trenches during
the rigours of a Crimean winter, while it was only too
obvious that great mortality must result from defending
such an exposed position with troops living upon scant
food ; whose clothing was dirty and threadbare ; whose
boots were worn out ; and for whom neither fuel, nor
expectation of better equipment, had been provided.
There had been no preparation so far for wintering on
the Chersonese, nor visible effort to infuse hope into
the hearts of men who were so patient as to appear
almost apathetic about their own hardships. The tacit
compact which every voluntary soldier makes with his
Sovereign was, in this campaign, on one side fulfilled
to the uttermost, and a mischievous system was com-
pensated for by the moral fibre of officers and men,
who accepted the needless evils as though they had
been terms of the chivalrous covenant by which they
had sworn to abide.

Experience can generally foretell what may be
dreaded in camp life on new ground, where, as in

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 253

the Crimea, neglected sanitation, bad food, inclement 1854
weather, exposure, and over-work, insure a list of
diseases, which, until the conditions are changed,
medical skill is powerless to stamp out. The troops
after Inkerman were in a lowered bodily state, and in
grave need of rest ; their lack of vitality made them
ready victims to all the poisonous ailments that were
rife.

The British soldiers had little energy now for any
work not included in their imperative round of duties,
yet hundreds, wearied and ill, refrained from going into
hospital. It must have appeared to them that pre-
cedent gave little hope of alleviation or cure in the
death-traps where their comrades had succumbed.
Possibly they knew that mere change of surroundings
would not include absence of their present hardships,
and that the hospitals offered only the same lack of
decent comfort, the same sordid, repulsive experiences
which they were manfully enduring. The ambulance
service, too, proved a deterrent ; it was casual and
clumsy ; often improvised in extremity ; and the invalids
carried down for embarkation had hours of agony,
through no fault of their kindly bearers, who generally
did their utmost to lessen the tortures of the road.
And so it befel that sick men languidly continued on
duty ; dragging their weary limbs ; daily growing more
feeble ; too indifferent to quarrel ; too sad to swear ;
and so changed in habit that saluting, being an effort,
was given up, and officers were too wise not to ignore
the omission. Hope had vanished ; the hospitals did
not suggest it ; so the sufferers frequently waited till
they were mortally stricken ere they would give in.
Being used to a certain round of privation and pain
brings a conviction that good has lapsed beyond recall,
and thus it often

" Makes us rather bear those ills we have
Than fly to others that we know not of."

254 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

T854 The hospitals, however, were crowded. Ship after
ship brought its load of wounded, and fever-stricken, to
Scutari, where the hapless individuals, if not too ill or
too apathetic, hoped to recover, though had they known
the frightful statistics, weekly increasing at an appalling
rate, they might well have preferred " easeful death "
on the voyage to the almost certain fate awaiting them
in the pest houses, which the splendidly spacious build-
ings at Scutari had become.

It was a fortunate coincidence that Miss Nightingale
and her band of brave nurses arrived there only a few
days before the overwhelming influx of work was
brought from the battle-field three hundred miles away.
Though possessing a rare aptitude for business, and
zeal for redressing mistakes, for a considerable time
even she was baffled by insidious forms of the malig-
nant diseases which decimated her wards. Before her
arrival the hospital staffs had been quite unable to cope
with the fearful strain put upon them ; they did not
possess the requisite authority for obtaining even abso-
lutely and instantly-needed aids to cure, nor had they
in anything like adequate numbers, nor quantity, the
indispensables of large infirmaries.

Miss Nightingale's anxiety increased with the increas-
ing death rate. In her crusade against crass ignorance,
she had a powerful ally at home in Mr. Sidney Herbert.
After a considerable period, in which thousands died of
zymotic diseases, a thorough investigation resulted in a
complete system of sanitation, when the death rates
decreased, and soon were no higher than those of
military hospitals at home. But the improvement did
not begin till March, and meanwhile desperate calami-
ties occurred.

The amiable spirit, expressive of confidence in the
Government, manifested by certain officers of high
grade in the services, both in their private and public
despatches, was the very antithesis of the outspoken
emotion of others, whose duty kept them in constant

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 255

touch with the terrible sufferings of that terrible winter. 1854
They witnessed the speechless endurance of Lord
Raglan's " faithful workers of miracles," who were too
intelligent to be insensible to the fact that their lack of
suitable clothing, and proper food, was the effect of
official blundering. The evil results of mismanage-
ment no doubt surprised the individuals who were
responsible for them, as well as the soldiers themselves ;
but servants of the Crown must have been well aware
that, though they had undertaken duties circumscribed
by long usage, they had failed in providing for the very
emergencies they had created.

The loyal rank and file, whose numbers were lessen-
ing daily (for the recruits arriving were often stricken
immediately after landing), were quiet, unspeakably
patient and reserved. With their heroic endurance was
mingled a certain pride, which forbore openly to show
how deeply the spirit of a true man must always resent
having been made the victim of heedlessness. The
soldiers' experience had bitterly proved the unreadiness
of the country for war, and, notwithstanding his silence,
his strange, almost despairing, calm, he could not
ignore what was so apparent to all.

Kelson Stothert had ample opportunity for knowing
the condition of the different camps, and his descrip-
tions coincide with those of the various writers who
had similar facilities for judging. Although not yet
officially appointed Chaplain to the Naval Brigade, he
was practically its chaplain already, and regarded the
Blue-jackets there, his "parishioners," his own special
charge ; and his frequent visits to them brought him
into close contact with the soldiers also ; besides, he
had many friends among the officers, who, doubtless,
talked over these grave matters with him as oppor-
tunity offered.

The decision to go on indefinitely with the siege was
arrived at on the 6th of November, when it was also
determined to fortify the Ridge of Inkerman. The

2S6 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 French here agreed to aid the work, and Turks, under
English supervision, were also to be employed.

Excessive strain and weariness, stress of work and
adversity, rendered the troops unfit to withstand the
biting cold of the bleak, barren, wind-swept plateau,
where there was neither natural, nor improvised, shelter,
and they were certainly so reduced in numbers that to
undertake more labour was almost suicidal. The work
of the soldier exhausted him ; he was now seldom dry,
for the rains were incessant ; when he was free to snatch
sleep, he lay under canvas that did not cover him, and his
one dirty blanket could not possibly keep out the cold.

The French were not much better off as regards
shelter, for their wretched tentes dabri — bits of canvas
held up by short poles — gave neither protection nor
comfort. These tentes were shelter enough under an
African sky, but of small service in Crim Tartary.
Fuel was so scarce, the men had no time, no energy,
no desire to look for it ; there were certain imperatives
they recognised as duty, but care for their own well-
being was not one of them ; and there was assuredly no
one to watch on their behalf. Much of their clothing
was the loot taken from Russian bodies on the field,
and the wreck of the Guards' Brigade presented a
varied and surprising sight to new comers. It was a
woeful fact that the men were perplexed to under-
stand why they were permitted to wear rotting gar-
ments, and to eat food unfit for dogs, while England's
heart was aching to serve them, while transports were
plying between the shores, but all to no purpose, as far
as their welfare was concerned. It was said that in-
formation to the effect that the troops might require
every sort of provision for prolongation of the campaign,
should have been sent much earlier to the Government.
The Commissary-General did not know till the 8th of
November that the army would remain in the Crimea
during the winter, which had then actually begun, with-
out a single preparation having been made.

The Reverend KELSON STOTHERT AND "PARISHIONERS.

25 7

CHAPTER XXII.

In the rapidly-succeeding tragic events of the severe
winter of 1854, which began in November, the Allies
were spared no vicissitude nor suffering. The noble
temper of both officers and men was tried to the
uttermost by every sort of dire experience ; by loss
of comrades from death in the field, and from disease ;
by sickness and increasing hardships ; and by a dreary
outlook from which all expectation of speedy relief was
conspicuously absent.

History offers frequent instances of the sharp, stern
discipline of war resulting in new life and greater
energy to the peoples involved, but the awaking
seldom comes before the slain are counted, for

" He that will have a cake out of the wheat must needs tarry the
grinding."

The campaign had, so far, produced much dis-
satisfaction and doubt, as well as untold misery — a
pitiful harvest, where the self-sown seeds were already
yielding abundant fruits meet for repentance.

But now a terrible calamity overtook both the
Navies and Armies of the Allies. On the nth of
November, Captain Mends* in the Agamemnon makes
this significant entry in his diary : " What a night we
have had of it, with a terrible sea running." Kelson
Stothert's letters, too, make frequent mention of the

* Afterwards Admiral W. R. Mends, G.C.B.

2s8 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 inclement weather. It continued variable and threaten-
ing till the 14th, when a great storm from the south
swept sea and land with hurricane violence. The
Queen, off the Katcha, was right in its teeth, and at its
height the gale blew directly on to the shore, so that
ships that parted their cables and could not steam out
to sea were dashed to pieces on the rocks ; and fourteen
wrecks that bay alone claimed. The Sampson was
dismasted in a moment owing to being fouled by two
transports drifting on shore. At the mouth of the
Belbec, where ships of the English and French Fleets
were also at anchor, destruction and havoc prevailed.
At Eupatoria, the devastation among the shipping was
appalling.

Both inside and outside the harbour of Balaklava,
the sea and land were strewn with wreckage, which
was afterwards utilized for the construction of platforms
for the Artillery guns. Transports containing necessi-
ties, as well as comforts, for the troops, were driven on
shore and became wrecks, or went down almost before
the danger could be realized. In the Roadstead the
scene was one of wild confusion ; vessels jammed
together ; riggings adrift or inextricably intertwisted ;
bulwarks stove ; boats riven ; sails torn and masts
broken. Terrible injuries were inflicted, for, while
the tempest raged, the sailors were unable to protect
themselves from inevitable catastrophes caused by the
displacement of guns and heavy gear, and the falling
of masts. Much valuable property was either lost or
rendered useless.

Outside the Roadstead, the fury of the gale had
spread destruction broadcast ; ships had been driven
on the rocks in the very sight of men who could lend
no aid. The British lost the Resolute, which was filled
with ammunition, and the Prince, filled with stores and
much needed warm clothing. The French two-decker
of 100 guns went ashore at Eupatoria, and the Turkish
90-gun ship went down with all on board.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 259

On land old trees were torn up by the roots, and 1854
tent poles broken as though they had been toys. Even
the wounded and sick in the hospital tents were for
some hours without shelter, for the gale swept off
whatever it could unship. Nearly one-half of the
cavalry horses broke loose ; * the ground being in
a state of slush and mud increased the difificulties
tenfold.

When the storm had somewhat subsided. Captain
Ponsonby, of the steamer Trent, did splendid work in
aiding those still in danger ; volunteers at Balaklava
were let down by ropes to reach the drowning
sailors from the wrecks. For the gallant service done
by those from the chaplain's disabled ship the Admiral
signalled : " Well done. Queen ! " though Kelson
Stothert seems to think more of the action itself than
the appreciation it won, as he does not mention the
well-deserved praise.

His letters contain a vivid account of the calamity.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
Off the Katcha,

17th Nov.,' 1854.

I am very glad to hear that you are getting better.

We have had sad doings here during the last three days.
Until yesterday afternoon it has been blowing furiously, and
our tremendous Fleets have suffered the usual consequence of a
lee shore in a gale of wind. Not a pretty thing to read of, and
very troublesome to weather. The " oldest inhabitant " never
experienced anything like it. During the squalls which every
now and then blew through the rigging, some doomed ship
snapped her cables and drifted helplessly on to the Cossack-
lined beach. There are 13 ships on shore in this our anchorage,
or rather were, for most of them are gone to pieces or have
been burnt. The men-of-war suffered but little in comparison
to the transports. Three French liners and our London lost
Iheir rudders. Ours is badly sprung, and although with three

» "The War," page 266.— W. H. Russell.

17*

26o FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 anchors down, we all dragged. It was a most anxious day
and night, I can assure you. The Sampson has lost all three
masts, and the Turkish Admiral is also dismasted. Our spars
were well stayed, and all stood. During a lull in the gale
Captain Michell obtained leave by signal to send boats to a
wreck, which the sleepy old Admiral ought to have done long
before by means of small steamers, who could " veer " their
paddle boats astern with hawsers. A volunteer crew was
quickly found for three boats, and, at great personal risk, they
succeeded in reaching the wreck and bringing off a large
portion of the frozen, half-starved crew, together with two
women, the wives of soldiers. The Cossacks fired at our
boats, and a ball went through the bonnet of a woman and
killed a Blue-jacket of ours, passing right through his head.
We have saved 80 men, including officers, and the Fury 20.
The crew of the Lord Raglan are all prisoners, with the
lieutenant agent who was on board. The crew of a boat from
the Ville de Paris was taken by the Cossacks. The wrecks
in this part are the Lord Raglan,* the Bodsley, the Pyrenees,
and the Ganges, all first-class ships and filled with stores.
The rest here are French brigs, filled with horses. At
Balaklava, I regret to say, the Prince steamer went down with
300 souls on board, and 210 men were lost besides out of the
sailing transports, eight of which are totally destroyed and
many more seriously injured.f At Eupatoria the Danube war
steamer, the French Henri Quatre (70 guns), and a Turkish
liner, with 20 transports (more or less, for reports have not
been officially received from home) are lost. All the winter
clothing for the troops, with vast stores of powder and
provisions, are gone ! The sailing ships are to go to Sinope,
the birthplace of Diogenes and Mithridates, and I suppose
the remaining transports also, so that the steamers will have
to " battle the watch " by themselves. We would all willingly
remain and share their risks if we might. I could not help
reflecting on the solemn scene, and thinking jhow powerless we
are, with all our art and all our science. " Be still and know
that I am God " will be the subject of my next Sunday's
sermon.

It will be a much longer time between each letter now that
we are to be in Asia all the winter. I do hope you will all

* By the presence of mind of the master of the Lord Raglan, she was
" beached," and got off afterwards.

t The Rip Van Winkle went on to the rocks at Balaklava, and was lost with
all hands.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 261

write as frequently as you can, and send me books, stationery,
and, if possible, half a dozen Christmas puddings and a lot of
jam, pray do ! Consign it to P. and B. Weare and Sons,
Galata, Constantinople, and write to them to say when it
leaves England.

Kindest love.

Ever affectionately yours.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

20th November, 1854.

I am exceedingly anxious since I received Carry's letter
giving me perhaps not an unfavourable account of my father,
but still a sufficient impression to render me desirous of knowing
how he is getting on. I do hope that the next mail may bring
me satisfactory letters. Jenner wrote to me, telling me of the
death of his brother Nicholas. I had seen it before in my
paper, and so expected the tidings from him.

I have been able to glean more accurate intelligence of the
late gale. Only 287 were lost at Balaklava, instead of 500
as we heard at first. It was the gross mismanagement that
characterizes all our movements which was effective, in this
instance also, in causing such a loss of life and property.
None of these transports ought to have been anchored outside
such a harbour as Balaklava. This disorganization reigns
through everything, both in the navy and army. If Admirals
have not ability, they are helpless in sudden action, where
instant decision is as necessary as a big grasp of mind
is essential to the making of a great general. A true
commander is a man singled out by nature for his career.
No amount of mental culture or professional knowledge will,
by itself, constitute the effective commander-in-chief A
great chief, such as " The Duke," Nelson, or Napoleon, must
have so sure a capacity for organization, and arrangement of
detail, that he can retain or throw out his strength with effect
at any moment, and must hold all this within himself, just as
the wri^ contains all the nerves and muscles, and complex
machinery necessary for expanding the fingers at will, or
giving full force to the hand. None of our Generals seem to
be of this order. The French are better in this respect, partly
from education, partly from instinct. Our men are as brave
as they, but less effective. Fill an Englishman's stomach and
take him to the field in a palanquin, and he will fight to the

262 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 last with all the chivalry of the knights of old. The French
are ever ready to adapt themselves to the circumstances of
the times, full or empty, and do not disdain, if necessary, to
run away. Our troops are warriors, theirs are soldiers.

We are going to Stamboul, as it is ascertained that our
rudder is in such a bad condition it is impossible we can
weather out another gale, so we are about to try the skill of
the Turkish Dockyard. If we do go there (of course, nothing
is certain but death and the taxes) I shall be able to search
out some of my missing packages. My men at the Camp are
preparing as well as they can to build themselves huts for
the winter, with what success I am afraid to say. The ground
in front of the batteries is covered with shot, so that it would
be " impossible to walk on it, even if the enemy permitted.
Great jokes occur in the batteries. One of our Blue-jackets
had made up his mind to jump the parapet and pick up a
" Whistling Dick " * a shell which had not yet exploded, and
was supposed to have gone out. The sailor, in spite of re-
monstrances from his officer, leaped the parapet and advanced.
Just as he approached, bang ! went the shell. His messmate
sprang out to pick up his remains, but there stood the man
covered with dust, dirt, and gunpowder, but perfectly unhurt.
" Ah," he said to his friend with a reproachful air, " Ah, Bill,
that's what I call a breach of coniidence."

The gun boats have answered badly, and are hardly sea-
worthy. When they were being constructed the builders
pointed out the disadvantages of the design, but the
Admiralty refused to allow the plans to be altered. The
event has justified the forebodings of the builders. I was
talking to my friend Eber as to the propriety of newspaper
correspondents urging on the public all this disorganization,
and failure from stupidity, but he says, the point has already
engaged the attention of correspondents, who had decided that
it was not advisable to make it as public as they could wish,
lest it should prejudice our cause out here, among the enemy,
who would gain fresh courage from our defections.

It is again blowing awfully, and promises to be a repetition
of last week. I pray God, it may not be so.

Some of Kelson Stothert's letters about this time,

* A shell from a 1 3-inch mortar that had rings in which were hooks put to lift
the shell into the mortar. As the shell went through the air these rings caused a
whistling noise.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 263

relatiilg to the sufferings of the troops, were published 1854
in newspapers at home. An article descriptive of a
certain action was the first on the subject which arrived
at the Times office. For this he received a warm
acknowledgment, and a blank cheque which he did not
consider himself justified in using, as the small service
had had its reward in the doing. In after years he
regarded his literary labours from a different point of
view.

Living almost entirely upon bread (presumably not
of the best quality) it would have been unreasonable to
expect a healthy condition to be maintained. The
dietary of the sick forty years ago was not the science
it is to-day, and even had more been known about the
various qualities of foods efificacious for precaution and
cure, individual knowledge was rendered useless in the
Crimea for lack of supplies.

On the 17th, another Russian ship of the line was
brought to the mouth of Sevastopol harbour and sunk.
To British captains this appeared a wanton waste,
not unmingled with cowardice.* Captain Michell, of
the Queen, offered to try and break the boom by
taking his beautiful three-decker at it under all plain
sail, but the Admiral would not allow this attempt to
be made.

Kelson Stothert's heart was with the Naval Brigade ;
he wanted to share their perils, and for their sakes, as
well as his own, not to remain in what might be
considered the safer position. It is this fine chivalrous
spirit which, in action, increases the death roll of the
officers, but also, in action, inspires the splendid
courage shown by men who are confident their
commanders will never lead into dangers without
themselves taking the risks that are greatest.

• Captain Mends remarks : " It appears to be done hurriedly

Perhaps they fancied a breach had been' made in their barrier by the gale ; . .

it is very strange so to ruin their own harbour. " — " Life of Admiral

Mends," page 204.

264 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

The difficulty of getting from the ship to the camp
increased as the weather became more winterly, and
though the prospects for improving the condition of the
army were almost desperate, and his health was
enfeebled by frequent illness, he was looking forward
with eager anxiety to being sent to that bleak ground
to face the hardships and privations of his dauntless
Blue-jackets.

Though never apathetic, the perpetual dance of death
around him induced a wish to appear stoical. Did men
not cultivate, during periods of warfare, the semblance
of insensibility to the sufferings they have no means of
assuaging, the natural pity inherent in almost every
human breast, if not thus checked, would entail so
much emotion that the accomplishment of sterh duty
would be impossible.

Fatal illnesses were now brief and frequent, and the
overcrowded hospitals were fast filling newly-made
graves. Kelson Stothert knew that at the front he
would find work enough, and that, there, inaccurate
reports and evil tidings would no longer chafe his
spirit, for he would be where he wanted to be, in the
thick of the fighting, hearing everything as it occurred,
and able to help the poor fellows who might need the
comfort he was ready to give. In his announcement
of the appointment to his parents he does not under-
estimate the risk, but his satisfaction can be read
between the. lines.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Qmen,

26th November, 1854.
I have been in great distress about you, but the letters of
yesterday have reassured me. I go now with a cheerful and
thankful heart as chaplain to the Naval Brigade upon the
heights of Sevastopol. I have just written to say that letters
may be sent to me there, but no ! please address to H.M.S.
Diamond, Balaklava, Black Sea Fleet. I have not a moment
to spare. God bless you. Write soon.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 265

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

November 26th, 1854.
The order has just arrived for me to go to the camp. I do
not think it my duty to excuse myself, for I fear greatly it
would be difficult to find a substitute. The hardships will be
very great, and it would be wrong if I did not view my position
with grave anxiety. But, with God's help, I may evade
sickness and danger. If not, His will be done 1

Under date November 28th, 1854, the Log of the
Queen contains the following entry : —

" Sent Reverend S. K. Stothert to Diamond to do duty as
Chaplain to Naval Brigade."

266

CHAPTER XXIII.

The prolongation of the siege of Sevastopol was be-
coming incalculably depressing, for the gale had ushered
in upon the invading Armies the most grievous period
of the campaign. The victory of Inkerman having
fixed a determined conquering spirit, the stubborn hard-
ships, which were daily increasing, gave incessant op-
portunity for heroic endurance. But mismanagement
and misfortune irritated the men, who could not see
that matters were advancing. The troops were impa-
tient to be at the assault, and to turn their backs upon
a country that had proved deadly to so many of their
comrades. It was said that the Russian troops also
were so sick of the circumstances of a tardy siege that
very considerable inducements had now to be held out
to them to persevere. Service could only have been
half-hearted under generals who were averse to harass-
ing their operations by care of the wounded, and who
deemed it better economy to procure new soldiers than
to be at the expense of curing those whom fighting and
pestilence had disabled.

The siege work greatly consisted in constructing
strong entrenchments, and this involved exposure to
bitter winds, snow and rain. The Allies were at the
last extremity for clothing. It had not been foreseen
that ships freighted with winter garments would be
destroyed ; and another unreckoned calamity empha-
sised the privation, for water, which could not be
drained, filled the trenches, and in them the once sturdy

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 267

flower of England's soldiery had to sufifer through long 1854
hours of duty that frequently ended in prostration and
death, and from which few escaped unharmed. It is
doubtful whether the troops, who had to face so much
unmitigated misery, would have been at all consoled
could they have realised that they were making history.
Man is so constituted that a mental vision rarely renders
him oblivious to the needs of his body, nor, indeed, can
the hunger of the soul be appeased by mere material
well-being. While experiencing every phase of squalid
undoing, the British soldier in the Crimea, like Luther,
proved himself "a right piece of human valour," and,
even when the hand of Death was upon him, he was
rarely seen to falter.

Tents not having arrived, Lord Raglan sent officers
to Constantinople to obtain wood, and the necessary
tools for making huts ; but, when these were landed,
the difficulty of getting the material up to the various
encampments was almost insuperable. The loss of the
stores at sea made it necessary to reduce rations, and
this increased the prevalence of sickness.

Although orders resulted in contracts, there was fre-
quent detention of stores ere ships could be procured
to convey them ; and detention, too, en route, while the
confusion about transhipment and freights, caused im-
mense delay. In the Levant cattle and other native
supplies could be occasionally procured at reasonable
cost ; but the scarcity of transport had there also to be
met, steamers being absolutely necessary for live stock.
It was all too apparent that the ordinary crew did not
care to encounter the terribly stormy winter weather of
the Black Sea, and the prices of freights rose propor-
tionately ; and, even when the ships arrived at Bala-
klava, as they were unloaded in their turns, the most
urgently-needed stores had often to remain in the holds
for weeks (either in or outside the port) for lack of
room to unship cargo.

There were certain places in the harbour reserved

268 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 foi" the different disembarkations, cattle, of course, being
landed where there was most room to spare. The sick,
destined for the Bosphorus hospitals, had one portion
to themselves ; and there was also an ordnance wharf
for munitions, ordnance stores, and shell. The confu-
sion often made men despair, the want of organisation
here being keenly felt by all concerned, though certain
commanders eventually forced the untoward conditions
into working order ; but their success was more owing
to their personal energy in making the best of circum-
stances, than to the forethought of the home Govern-
ment. Unable to conjure back what the gale had
destroyed, they hastened the despatch of stores to the
front, when it was in their power to do so ; but this was
daily becoming more impossible.

The rains had made the much-trodden ground a mud
track, where wheels had now to be abandoned, and
baggage animals were soon either killed outright by
overwork and underfeeding, or so used up that they
could do no more. Men, as tired as their horses, had
to turn them into a yard eighteen inches deep in mud ;
there were no stable-keepers apart from the drivers,*
and naturally the men thought more of their own utter
exhaustion than of the needs of the dumb, hungry beasts
of burden, looking pitifully at each other for the sym-
pathy their masters had no strength to give.

A few days of such labour reduced the number of
available horses incredibly. Hay did not arrive, and
the toil, wet, and lack of food, killed them off quickly.
The hay was probably lying in the transports, while
the poor brutes were perishing close to their cure.

A road (metalled but not strategic, for, though it
was wanted for the purposes of siege preparation,
it was more sorely needed for the commissariat
transport) over the Col now was a vital necessity.
Sir John Burgoyne estimated that a thousand men

* " The Crimean War," page 167.— Admiral Sir Leopold Heath, ICC.B.

Q
D

<
5

D
y

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 269

could not construct it in even three months, so, 1854
after the 14th of November, the work was relegated
to Turks, but cold and rain, fever and dysentery,
quickly decimated their ranks ; unfed and unsheltered,
their attempt was a failure. Had a sufficient number
of the Sultan's soldiers, supervised by British con-
tractors and officers, been engaged two months pre-
viously for this undertaking, the emergency might have
been overcome ; but the emergency had not been fore-
seen, and, alas, there were no British officers then, or
now, to spare. There was not a single regiment that
was fully officered. Colonel Patterson, of the 3rd
Buffs, for a time, had to perform the duties of six
colonels as best he could.

Kinglake considers that Lord Raglan might have
urged upon the French to man part of his siege works,
in order to have released those who could have aided
the road-makers. The Commander-in-Chief stated
that he had gone as far as was politic in trying to get
Canrobert to take up part of the position of occupation,
and the historian infers that to have pressed the French
general more than he had done, for an adjustment of
the toil of the siege work between his own diminished
troops and the reinforced French army (reinforced by
troops brought in British transports), might have im-
perilled the object for which the Allies were striving.
It was openly said that, at this period, some of their work
(notably Bosquet's) was actually of comparatively small
value, while that which was imposed on the British
was imperative. There was no small degree of callous
selfishness in Canrobert's reluctance to give relief, which,
though his sick were also very numerous, his reinforce-
ments would have rendered possible.*

Kinglake states that before the end of December
warm clothing for the troops arrived at Balaklava, but
*here was no means of getting it up to the different

* Sir Arthur Blackwood wrote about this time : " Our men are literally worked
to death, and, compared with the French, are an army of scarecrows. "_j

270 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 Divisions, as already every arm of the service was
overtaxed, and impoverished in numbers. Another
writer* remarks, " . . . . Balaklava, where we saw
the urgently needed stores rotting in the mud."

It is almost impossible to imagine what men must
have suffered in despair as, the hour before going to
the trenches for all-night duty, they watched for the
food which did not arrive, because, perchance, the
messengers (for men were now the beasts of burden)
carrying the meat up from Balaklava, had succumbed
on the track, or — surely a pitiful sight — when it arrived
too late to be cooked for them. It is not easy to
realise the misery of the dreary march with the
ghastly feeling of inanition and hunger, and the
certainty of increasing weakness and distress as the
night wore on.

Lord Raglan heard about this time that the Gov-
ernment intended sending out 300 navvies to construct
a railroad from Balaklava to the front, but the navvies
did not arrive in time to avert the evils of the winter
lack of transport.

There were variations in the capacity and numbers
of the different regiments : f the 7th Royal Fusiliers
had a colonel whose energy and resource were equal
to the feat of arranging that b^t horses and officers'
horses, not engaged in outpost duty, should, at least,
attempt this burden bearing. And that Lacy Yea (we
have heard before of him and his invincible Fusiliers
at Alma) succeeded, was proved by the measure of
comfort his men experienced during the worst of the
winter, though there is no description extant of the way
their supplies were dragged through the eight miles of
mud and mire. Probably the belated Rough Riders
could have told some curious tales of how they, instead

* Sir Edmund Verney.

t On January 6th, the 63rd Regiment had only 52 rank and file at the morning's
parade, and on the 9th that number was reduced to 7 ! It went out from England
1,080 strong." — " Letters from Head Quarters," page 47, vol. ii.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 271

of the horses, had had to do the work. It must have 1854
been a sorry errand, if the poor fellows were of those
unfortunate recipients of boots so tight that their
wearers could not take them off, lest, because of
swelled feet, it would be impossible again to put
them on.*

The French had comparatively an easy task in
arranging for the transport of their supplies. With
space and convenience for disembarkation, and a good
road (which they themselves had constructed) from
Kamiesh to their camps, food and munitions were
assured ; but their sickness was terrible. The French
regime was very scanty, and the strongest of their
soldiers were easy preys to zymotic complaints. The
camps on undrained ground were exposed to the
rigours of an unusually severe winter, and the bits of
canvas raised by sticks above the ground were
miserable shelter in the cruel nights. The sufferings
from frostbite and scurvy were appalling. The
majority of writers on the campaign attribute the
prevalence of the latter disease to the lack of
vegetables, but a different opinion may, perhaps, be
permitted. In a northern climate health cannot be
maintained on a vegetable diet ; but strength and
endurance result, under even extreme conditions of
cold, from eating little else but fresh animal food. In
the winter temperature of the Chersonese, commissariat
makeshifts produced lowered vitality, liability to blood
poisoning, and gangrene, while there was no possibility
of sufificiently strong recuperative effort to ensure
recovery. Even when vegetables arrived the soldiers
had not the energy to fetch them from the port, which
indicated that much more nutritious food was actually
the need of the hour. A strong distaste to their

* " One poor fellow of the 7th committed suicide when on sentry by blowing
his brains out with his firelock. He told a comrade shortly before, that he was
determined to put an end to himself, as he could not stand the hard work and
the severity of the weather any longer." — Ibid, page 57, vol. ii.

272 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1854 meagre and monotonous diet* must have been en-
gendered when General Canrobert's gift of a ration
of bread to the English soldiers, was received by them
with enthusiastic acclamation. " The shifts men and
officers were put to in order to obtain artificial heat,
were, to say the least, cunning, old tin kettles being
used as braziers." Large numbers of tent, or hut
stoves, were left unsheltered on the wharf ; they were
perfectly useless because there was no fuel, no means
of procuring it either ; it was extremely difficult to get
enough for the cooking stoves, even roots had to be
dug up for this purpose.

The Blue-jackets were more resourceful than the
soldiers. In December the Sanspareil engineers
cleverly invented what had long been sorely needed —
a coffee roasting machine. Why roasted coffee, instead
of green, was not sent out was inexplicable, but
eventually this blunder was rectified. It was not the
Commissariat Department only that was grossly
defective. Disorganization prevailed throughout the
whole administration ; it was stated that when the
troops got on board the new troopship, Megcsra (built
by the Admiralty), they found there were no racks for
their arms. On a system, where such mistakes were
committed in all its branches, it is hardly a matter of
surprise that the daily tragedy enacted in the trenches
made but slow effect. Signally failing in its simplest
duties, the attention of the country was at length drawn
to it. Uninitiated into the mysteries of office, and
aggravated by the supineness of Governmental well-
meaning servants, the country, whose heart was torn
by grief for loss and failure, had the discrimination,
which sorrow had made keen, to know where the fault
lay ; and, with a sharpened sense of injustice, gave
practical evidence of its earnestness, and its tender

* "The troops frequently eat their meat raw from want of firewood to cook it,
and lately four pounds of meat only have been issued to 15 men — men who only
get one night in five free from guard or trenches." — " Life of Admiral Mends,"
page 230.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 273

sympathy for the brave and innocent victims of a
decrepit routine.

In the following letters some account is given of
the various sorties which, during December, proved so
harassing to both sides. In them also Kelson Stothert
writes of his own sufferings in the brave spirit he
manifested throughout the campaign, making as light
as possible of severe attacks of illness, and dwelling
more on the plans for the work he had so much at
heart than upon his own ailments.

TO MR. LYTTON (AFTERWARDS THE EARL OF LYTTON).

H.M.S. Diamond,
Balaklava, Black Sea Fleet,

December 2nd, 1854.

I have been transferred, pro tempore, to this ship, which now
forms my headquarters. My present appointment is that of
chaplain to the Naval Brigade on the heights of Sevastopol,
so that for the future, if my life be spared, I shall be able to
give you news from the front.

We have lately constructed a new work, which was opened
the night before last, and commenced a very efficient fire on
the dockyard creek. It is to the extreme left of our lines, and
to the extreme right of the French position.

I was in the Green Hill battery when the first gun was
fired, and the Russians replied to it instantly in the most
spirited manner, but with little effect, the shot falling either
short or far beyond the mark. They appear to have no idea
of the aurea mediocrites ; the golden mean, however, is as
requisite in gunnery as to the composition of the most
palatable " half and half."

The whole ground to the rear of the batteries is strewn with
shot and shell, some of the latter being fifteen inches in
diameter. It is a difficult matter to avoid the shot when
descending the hill to the batteries. Our men dread the
mortars more than anything else. The French advanced post
is now close to the Russian outworks, and the intervening
distance is mined by both combatants, so the daily fire is
nothing to what will come eventually. Colonel Somerset, in
my presence, stated that we should eat our Christmas dinner
at Sevastopol. I hope and trust devoutly it may be so.

274 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

We are all of us very busy now making huts for the winter.
My own is a masterpiece of architecture ; certainly not equal
to an English cow-shed, but above the grade of an ordinary
potato-pit. At present I am on board this ship — the hospital
ship of the Brigade — for the sake of nursing a bad attack of
low fever and influenza. I am writing in bed ; I fear you will
hardly be able to decipher the caligraphy.

This morning the Russians made a sortie upon a work the
Rifles had taken a few days since. They were repulsed, I am
happy to say, with a slight loss upon our side; This is really
the only news from the camp. The ground is saturated with
wet, and my tent is in a puddle. Cholera too, I regret to say,
has again broken out virulently.

When anything important really occurs, if you wish you
shall hear about it from me.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Diamond,
Balaklava, Black Sea Fleet,

December 2nd, 1854.

I am here on the sick list already, but it is only a very
severe cold and cough. I arrived in the Industry, and the
stupid commander would not give me a boat to come on
board. Not being well at the time (I had not quite got over
a slight attack of cholera and its consequent fever), I caught
a very bad chill by having to sleep on a chest on deck. A
walk to the camp up to my knees in mud, a night in a hut
dug out of the side of a hill, and a walk back in mud, mud,
mud, sent me to bed, and very glad I am to have a bed.
These are trifles to us, but exceedingly horrible, I dare say,
to you. There is very little the matter.

The Russians made a sortie to-day, and did us some
damage, but not much. Two nights ago I went to one of our
advanced batteries, distant 1,500 yards from the town, and
had a fine view of Sevastopol. All the houses are unroofed.
I could not stay long on the look out, for, as my companion
and I stood on a gun above the parapet, the enemy fired at us,
and the gunners made us come down ; so I cannot give you a
very grand account of the place. By Christmas I hope I shall
know more. The hill side above the town is covered thickly
with shot and shell ; it is rather exciting to have to look out
for the shot when a gun is fired from the Russians, and to
avoid it if possible. Fancy having to walk down the field

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FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 275

with 130 cannon on the top of Smallcombe Wood. The men
in the batteries at night take it very coolly. They smoke,
make coffee, soup, etc., and read books. When I am well I
shall have a Sunday evening service there.

Will you ask Mr. East to make application for me some-
where for 1,500 bibles, and as many prayer books as he can
get. If they come out by January they will be very useful :
if they cannot be shipped so as to reach then, never mind.
They must be directed to the Chaplain of the Naval Brigade,
H.M.S. Diamond, Balaklava, Black Sea Fleet, and sent by
P. and O. boats to H.M.S. Queen. The men cannot sell them
here, and, having no other books, there are several chances that
they will read them.

If you can send me a chest full of potted meats (not deli-
cacies, but beef tongues, soup, etc.), it will help to keep me
alive, for often rations do not reach us at the camp for two
days together. I want an English saddle and bridle, an old
saddle and surcingle, and a stout horse-rug. Topsy's will do.
My two parishes are eight miles apart, and I have been nearly
killed already in the transit. For myself please send me also
two rugs lined with oilskin. This is a letter of wants. I am
writing in bed, and have only time to say how glad I am my
father is so much better.

Kindest love to all.

P.S. — My letters for the future will be somewhat short, I
fear.

I have come to the conclusion that patience is a virtue ;
since I have been ill the Scotch doctors at the hospital have
sent for a Free Church clergyman, who does chaplain's duty
there, contrary to the rules of the Service. The Scotchmen
laugh, and think they have done the parson !

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Balaklava,

Dec. 2ist, 1854.

I have just received your letters, which have been delayed

for a long time ; these are the first I have had for three weeks.

I have now quarters on shore in the town, and they are very

remarkable, two rooms over a stable with open floors and

broken windows, saturated by filth, and pervaded by smells

18*

276 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

worse than Russian. Still it is more convenient than living in
a tent, for I have joined myself to an active army chaplain, and
now visit the naval hospital ship, the marine hospital ship, the
sick in transports, and my own camp seven miles away. Un-
less you send me out a bridle and saddle from England, I must
walk there. The campaign will probably last another six
months, and, if it is over before, the saddle will be valuable to
me. Send me out a large pair of best English spurs as well.

I am very anxious to get a good supply of tracts for my
sick people, and have written to Mr. East about it. Pray give
him directions how to send them, for I like your idea, although
Grace is a great rogue (he is an acquaintance of mine), and is
just as likely to lose parcels as anyone else. The general plan
is the one usually practised in the way of business. The secret
of the safety of Sir John Campbell's parcels is this : he is a
general officer, I only a chaplain of brigade. No post-captain
in the Fleet ever loses anything, but every other officer has
been systematically robbed by steamers and transports. What
a benighted place Bath must be. Chobham shirts are only
those flannel shirts which are worn in camp, and at home by
dandy cricket players. I have no doubt that you will find
there are thousands in Bath when you see those from London. I
want warm clothes sadly — warm drawers, warm stockings, warm
coats, and boots over the knee, with thickest soles. We never
can have our feet dry walking or riding through mud knee deep.
I am afraid our clerical friends at home, if they saw our clergy
here, would be rather scandalised. A dirty white choker, one
a week ; coat (only one, the apostolic number) with standing
collar ; M.B. waistcoat up to the throat for warmth, and to
hide the flannel shirt ; boots up to the knee, and beard and
moustache of Oriental length ; hats such as can be found.
Two precise Oxford men recently came out as volunteer chap-
lains ; but their beauty soon became dimmed, and their ecclesi-
astical personal lustre as dull as their unblacked boots. They
are, however, doing good work, and are capital fellows, wanting
only a little flexibility.

Reinforcements are arriving daily, but unless we have at
least a thousand a week our cause is hopeless. We hear that
Parliament has met ; but I see no papers now, and am quite
as ignorant of the state of Europe as the dullest Tartar in the
Crimea. I have written a letter to little Boyle upon the sub-
ject you mentioned. Doubtless a man-of-war is a fearful place
for any human soul to live and struggle in, but many good and
excellent men are to be found there, and we have got to the

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 277

point of public worship being decently performed, and religion
not openly scoffed at. The boy was quite wrong in asserting
what he did. Pray state so much to A. K. No one can be
prevented from offering up his devotions in secret, nor from
joining, heart and soul, in public worship. A little thought
would show this, but some people do not always discriminate.
Besides, his own companions are exceedingly well educated,
nice boys, of whom I am very fond, and who, I am sure, are
not of the character attributed to them. It must have been a
mistake on A. K.'s part. Little can be done, as you know, on
board a large and hastily-manned ship like the Queen. Old
men-of-war's men, taught in the ship's schools when boys, are
often most praiseworthy people ; but in time of war ships must
be manned. Indifferent cabdrivers, bargemen, merchant sea-
men, citizens, labourers, are all taken in, and each does his
best to contribute to the little hell upon earth a ship at such a
time contains. A chaplain's work is like the charge of the
British cavalry upon the Russians' guns at Balaklava ; still,
now and then, thank God, streaks of sunshine break in through
the clouds.

Piety is a good old Latin word. It means, in its first sense,
love towards father or mother; in its later meaning, love
towards our Father in heaven.

Perhaps about June next, if I live so long, I may come
home again. The Naval, Brigade will, it is said, be released
from their labours, and the survivors brought back in the
Albion about that time. The Army, or rather the artillery
and engineers, are very jealous of them, for they do all the
heavy work in the trenches, being the only persons capable of
"knocking about" the big guns. I wish they had not the
reputation of being such a ruffianly set. They go by the
name of the " Naval Brigands." But their sufferings are very
great. They are badly supplied with food, and every morsel
they eat has to be carried many miles. This is, of course, in
addition to sometimes thirty-six hours in the trenches, snatch-
ing rest as they can.

Yesterday the French made a reconnaissance towards the
right of Balaklava, but the Russians were on it very rapidly,
and the cavalry retired after firing a few shots. Last night
the Russians made a sortie upon our lines to the right and
left attacks, and surprised the 37th, leaping down upon them
and destroying their blankets, or rather walking off with them.
These were recruits, and it was their first night in the trenches !

278 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

The 50th, on the left, were suddenly attacked, their sentry
stabbed, and about forty men killed. The Russians were
easily repulsed, but three officers on our side are missing, and
one has since died. The affair occurred about two o'clock in
the morning.

I am going, as I told you, to live in Balaklava for a time,
but am now suffering from a slight attack of camp fever. It
is very slight, and I shall be well to-morrow.

I have no news, except that I am filled with anxiety to be
strong for my work, my Blue-jackets, and my services.

Kindest love to all.

Ever affectionately yours.

279

CHAPTER XXIV.

The new year did not begin auspiciously for the
Allies. Although, at the end of December, a French
loan, of men and horses, had aided the weaker Army
in getting up shot and shell, as well as provisions, to
the front, the numbers of the troops were now dimin-
ishing so fast, it would not have been unreasonable if
they had altogether retired from the contest.

Reinforcements partially made up for the terrible
devastation of carnage and disease, but they were
mostly composed of young recruits, easy preys to the
maladies prevalent in the camps, and mortality was
very great amongst these untried soldiers ; indeed,
many only landed to be at once stricken.

The besiegers had a practically inexhaustible enemy,
to whom, while perforce almost at a standstill them-
selves, they were giving the time he needed for skilful
and strenuous preparation to resist the most determined
onslaught. While cholera, typhus, and other malignant
forms of sickness, were sweeping the British and
French ranks, the Russians were increasing the
strength of their fortress ; pushing forward their
boundary lines ; constructing new earthworks ; haras-
sing the invaders ; and also bringing in reinforcements
from their armies in the field. But a singular fact
remains an unanswered problem : no gigantic offensive
action from Sevastopol was attempted, nor any really
important attack upon the trenches, which were, at this

28o FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

time, guarded only by 350 men.* The defensive atti-
tude cost the Tsar less than it would have done to risk
another Inkerman. While remaining comparatively
quiescent his military prestige was not endangered, but
the condition of the Allies was so deplorable, an irre-
sistible sortie might well have been effected.

The modern British custom of sending frank de-
spatches from Headquarters, supplemented by the
publicity given to every detail by newspaper corre-
spondents, proved an Intelligence Department of great
value to the enemy. From this source he was made
aware of the dwindling armies opposed to his forces,
and that February and March, which, with grim
humour, the Tsar named his best generals, would
claim unnumbered victories ; and, from the published
opinions of English and French military experts, he
must also have received by telegraph, from his spies in
the West of Europe, many varied suggestions as to the
modes by which the schemes of the Allies could be best
circumvented.

At one period of the campaign somewhat con-
temptuous judgment was expressed about the Russian
Fleet having been shut up in the Roadstead of Sevas-
topol, but, in this apparently magnificent blunder, there
was an element of sagacious forethought, for the long
range guns of the naval ships in the harbour incessantly
tormented the camps and working parties of their
enemies.

The besieged had every conceivable advantage for
carrying out their plans ; the town was an enormous
arsenal which contained all the tools requisite for their
purpose, as well as thousands of hardy labourers well
accustomed to make use of them. Moreover the
engineering command was vested in Colonel de Tod-
leben, whose consummate skill might well be trusted
not to neglect a single item in the preparation for a

* "The Coldstream Guards in the Crimea," page 218. — Lieut.-Col. Ross-of-
Bladensburg, C.B.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 281

mighty resistance. Mines and counter-mines, batteries,
earthworks, and rifle pits were vigorously planned, and
guns placed in every tenable position where their fire
could spread most destruction. He lost not an hour
of the precious time the Allies had no choice but to
give. Though the French professed readiness for an
immediate assault, our batteries were not complete,
and, as the roads were quagmires, the necessary
munitions could not be brought up from the quays,*
so the only practical course was to abide events, and
to prolong the siege, within range of an enemy,
who, having men and guns he could have brought
to bear on any of the besiegers' weak defences,
fortunately remained, for the most part, sternly on the
defensive.

It is true that in the middle of January snow was so
deep, communications between Sevastopol and the in-
terior were cut off, and the supplies of food reduced.
The sick in the town were very numerous, and it was
stated that at Batchi Serai, where Prince Gortchakoff
and his Divisions held the road to the Centre of the
Empire, the place was full of houses turned into
hospitals. The sufferings also of the Russian troops
were great, and there was very inadequate medical
aid provided.

But the January death roll of the British Army in
1855 was the most appalling of the campaign ;t and
the reasons were not far to seek : bad feeding, and,
when snow or rain held sway, scant rations ; sentry
work ; duty in trenches where loathsome diseases
lurked ; never-ending toil, and always inadequate rest ;
and no protection from the severity of the climate,
except that which was afforded by the most dilapidated

* We learn from Admiral Heath (who was at the time doing strenuous labour
at Salaklava) that on the 22nd December 300 mules arrived. He states also :
"The roads are so bad that at one part it took 60 horses to get a gun over." —
" Letters from the Black Sea," pages 1 30-131.

t It rose to 3,168 (page 216), the number of sick to 23,076 (page 225). — "The
Crimea in 1854 and 1894." — General Sir Evelyn Wood.

282 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

garments. "Uniforms," tells Sir Evelyn Wood,
" threadbare and ragged, in some cases patched with
sandbags filched from the engineering stores in the
batteries." It was little marvel that sickness during
this month grew more and more rife, sickness, too,
which had often to be ignored till its victims fell prone
at their labours. Short shrift for the bravest, while the
deaths and burials alone would have kept the most
buoyant in a parlous state.

Lord Raglan, whose unerring insight had foreseen
many of his present difficulties, was now frequently
blamed for the results of unmanageable and irreconcil-
able conditions. He was, however, too inherently high-
minded to retaliate upon the Government that had put
him into a position where he was expected to compass
the impossible, which was left for his critics to accom-
plish— with their pen.

The colonels, generals, and brigadiers, were almost
all either dead, wounded, or sick. On January 26th
Sir Arthur Blackwood, in describing the state to which
the Army was reduced, wrote : " The Guards, about
1,500 strong, have 500 in hospital."

And the brave gallants of Merrie England did
not belie their renown. Some of them were very
cheery over their own discomforts and hardships, but
sorely depressed on account of their men, and the
poor stricken transport carriers they passed on their
road to the port ; for it is always more unbearable
to witness suffering that cannot be assuaged than to
endure it. A brave man can generally find courage
enough to struggle through his own Slough of
Despond, but to see others striking out to save
themselves . in vain, that is ever the true via crucis.
The squalid conditions to which a noble army was
subjected must have suggested strange mental question-
ings to those concerned, about the Government that
was responsible, and, in their despair, about the
Eternal Justice which permitted such apparently

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 283

useless waste of dear human life. In actual fighting
it is doubtful whether men can think consecutively
on any subject, but in the slow and weary days of
a disastrous siege, involuntarily thought, and feeling
also, must be embittered. The tasks of those who
had temporary immunity from wounds and disease
were colossal ; certain emergencies had to be met,
and it fell to their lot to meet them, and they had
also to bear the strain of witnessing the sufferings of
dying comrades who would not give in till resistance
too was absolutely vanquished.

For his necessities man must labour and endure,
but when he has to fight in quarrels he may not
understand, or, understanding, may regard with the
contempt they merit, it is a galling irony, if he has
also to fight to satisfy his necessities, as in the case
of the Allies in the Crimea.

The troops who perform much of the imperative
work of a campaign, knowing they cannot all personally
receive acknowledgment commensurate with their
achievements, have to fall back on the broader in-
centives of duty, patriotism, and valour. Only here
and there is a man in the ranks ever singled out for
distinction, and collective praise is but sorry reward.
There can be no doubt that consciousness of the
importance of his most strenuous individual efforts to
the success of the general plan, makes the British
soldier what he is in time of war — unswerving in
devotion to duty, and heroic in the cruellest straits.

In the ethics, as well as the practice of warfare,
it is found that the monotony of misery which a siege
often entails proves more trying to all concerned than
the stress and strain of military action ; but each
experience in turn evoked in the officers during the
Crimean campaign ideal soldierly qualities. There
were notable instances where their courage and self-
denying endurance inspired in their comrades, and in
their troops, a confidence almost akin to hope, and

284 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

certain of them disdained to parade the serious im-
pression made by events upon their minds.

The gift of humour enables its possessor to get
a wide perspective of each occurring circumstance, and
often prompts him with a due sense of proportion, to
ignore the pessimism of his fellows, and to make
the best of every situation. In the 71st Regiment
there was a typical young officer who could always
be relied upon to cheer the sick and sorry by his
own inherent gaiety and hopeful temperament. George
Campbell, son of Sir Donald, i6th captain of Dun-
stafifnage, did not belie the brave character of his
race. He died in 1869, but it was long a tradition
how his kindly mirth had invariably brought distraction
to the down-hearted ; how " handsome George " had
regarded all the mishaps of that gruesome winter from
a bright and humorous point of view ; and how, though
his own privations were severe enough, he had found
in them constant provocation to whet his wit. Big,
alert, and strong, when serving with the Turkish
contingent, on one occasion Campbell, perceiving two
wounded Osmanli in a very exposed position under
fire, darted across the space which separated, and
lifting one in each hand by his clothes, carried both
men through the fire to safety. " Never," wrote
General Gildea, a week before his death, forty years
after the Crimean War, " do I remember a handsomer
fellow, or a better comrade, than George Campbell.
His fascination was marvellous." And many there
were who shared his noble task of warding off foes
stern as the Muscovite, though of a subtler and more
insiduous kind.

Towards the end of January the weather became
drier, so the ground being harder, advantage was
taken to get stores up from the pdrt. Timber also
was conveyed, though with indescribable difficulty, to
the camps for the huts.

On the 27th, the first shipload of navvies for the

GEORGE CAMPBELL OF DUNSTAFFNAGE,

71st Regiment.

FROM A MINIATURE.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 285

construction of the railroad, arrived at Balaklava.
Messrs. Peto, Brassey, and Betts had arranged with
the Government to lay a line between the port and
the front, and to take no profits.

Rear-Admiral Boxer, of whom Lord George Paget
said : "A more hard working old sailor never lived,
nor a better abused," now succeeded Captain Heath,
at Balaklava, but the appointment was not a desirable
one for an energetic commander, as he had to take
upon himself so much of the blame of inevitable
hindrances to efficient service. There was actually no
means on the confined wharf to disembark cargo, and
even when it could be done the transport continually
failed.*

We have Sir Edmund Lyon's authority for the
statement that freights were occasionally re-shipped to
make room on the very inadequate landing. Although
warm clothing was in great quantities at the port the
end of January, it was some time before anyone
benefitted from the much-needed consignments.

The French works commanded the suburbs, but
formidable defences were rapidly increasing in every
part of Sevastopol. It now became absolutely impera-
tive that our Ally should take more of the toil which
our own soldiers had hitherto performed, and at length
Canrobert gave our overtaxed troops some relief
by allowing his own to do the duty of the pickets
and guards to the right of the Careenage Ravine, a
considerable help to Lord Raglan, for this outpost duty
had been singularly hard and continuous.

The British advanced works were subjected to
harassing skirmishes ; cannonades were nightly enter-
tainments ; and the firing was often heaviest during the

* Mr. Fielder says that he proposed for a regular organized transport at the
Horse Guards before coming out, but the idea was pooh-poohed. The want of it

has been the death of half the cavalry and artillery horses Often

the men in fatigue parties of 600 or 800 have to go down every day to
bring the salt meat up on their backs. — "Life of Sir Arthur Blackwood,"
page 79.

286 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

darkness, when the enemy's sorties proved very disas-
trous ; the frequent alarms made necessary rest a mere
name. It is almost inconceivable how yearningly the
worn and weary men on duty must have looked for-
ward to a few hours of undisturbed oblivion in sleep,
which they rarely, or never, now enjoyed.

At two o'clock on the morning of February 20th,
Sir Colin Campbell, with the Highland Division ("the
71st Regiment in advance''),* the Brigade of Guards,
with Artillery and Cavalry, marched towards the
Russian entrenched position on the Tchernaya. The
worst snow-storm of the winter met them on their
way ; they were nearly frozen ; and all but lost in a
snow drift. It had -been planned that General Bosquet,
with a large force from Inkerman, should join them on
the heights near the Tractir Bridge, but he failed to
face the weather ; and they had to retire. General
Vinoy, hearing of their straits, with 2,500 troops,
Zouaves and others, started at daylight and covered
their retreat. Had the 1,400 Russians known the
helpless state this body of their enemy was in — field
guns cased in ice, rifle barrels choked with snow and
sleet, and hands absolutely numb and unable to load
or fix bayonets — coming warm out of their own under-
ground huts, they would doubtless have made all the
poor fellows prisoners. The fact that Sir Colin
Campbell in his will left General Vinoy his pistols
(worth ;^50o), in recognition of his timely assistance,
is significant of his appreciation.

After 14 hours' struggling, the Expedition got back
to Balaklava, to find all their camp blown down and
buried in a field of virgin snow. Four hundred of the
force went into hospital with frost bites. A few days
ago a certain gallant general told the writer that both
his ears had been frozen on that luckless march.

The French now commenced constructing a road
from Kadikoi, by way of the cavalry camp, up to the

* " Letters from Headquarters," page 152.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 287

front, for, the use of the British. They lent mule
litters, too, to convey the sick down to the port.

" They are doing everything for us. Their ambu-
lance wagons take down our sick, their artillery bring
up our shells, and their fatigue parties are making a
road out of Balaklava for us. One thing is to be said,
they have 50,000 and we but 20,000 men, while our
line of attack is fully as long as theirs."

wrote Sir Arthur Blackwood, who did not conceal his
chagrin that our army had ' to be indebted for favours
to a sometimes unwilling Ally.

Between Kaldikoi and Balaklava the scum of the
East settled itself in huts, and nothing could have been
more effectual for the demoralization of those troops
who frequented the Babel. There were vendors of
everything no one needed ; and innumerable impor-
tunate sellers of useless superfluities to tempt the
unwary. All nationalities were represented ; every
type of liar, cheat, and rogue had here 'his unlicensed
booth, where excitement often ran high, and where the
offscourings of effete and young civilizations needed no
reconnaissance to lure a willing prey into their ruinous
clutches.

And meanwhile our chaplain has good reason to be
distressed in mind, body, and estate, and writes frankly
enough to his people of the pitiful experiences of
chaplains in general, and of his own rueful lot in
particular.

TO HIS BROTHER.
. Off Sevastopol,

January 5th, 1855.
Your first letter gave me great hopes that I should see you
before long, and I trust that the happiness will not be much
delayed.

I do not live above my income, restricted as it is.

I have not seen nor heard of the twelve tug boats, but these

288 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

are the kinds I recommended you to try and build. They will
always sell. I am going a pilgrimage to Baidar (a long way),
to see Eber, and to make some enquiries about the Danube
navigation.

Report says we open fire again to-morrow ; I do hope it is
-so, for we are all aweary of this life of inactivity.

Were yoii able to pay for me the Oxford people ? I am
suffering to-day. You must excuse this, for I have had to lie
all the morning, and have more letters to write.

Ever affectionately yours.

TO HIS BROTHER.

January I2th, 1855.

I was exceedingly glad to have a letter from you, but was
troubled at your bad spirits. You certainly have a great deal
to contend with — ^your inexperience and other deficiencies
(which time alone will make up to you) must stand in your
way. But take heart. You have a good chance ; great
caution and strong determination will carry you through. If
you can hold out ten years you will have conquered most of
your difficulties.

I thank you greatly for your offer to lend me money. I
will not accept it just now, but when I return home, or have
the living, I will then ask you, if you are in a position to lend.
Could I borrow sufficient money to pay off my creditors, from
a reasonable person, I could return it at so much a year, but
these people give no law, and what with interest, etc., etc., I
really find it impossible to arrange anything. Now I am here
I have no money to give them, for I get no pay and am
perfectly penniless.

I have been very ill with gastric fever and dysentry, brought
on by over exertion and anxiety of mind, and am now sent
down to Constantinople for change of air. I hope to be able
to return to the Crimea in ten days or a fortnight. There is
an immensity of work to be done in the clerical line. I have
300 sick always on hand. In the army 1,400 a week is the
average number. Nor can this be wondered at. Men get no
regular rations, always something missing, now tea, now beef,
now pork ; and green coffee is given them with no fuel to roast
it The soldiers have no huts, no warm clothing, no stout
boots, and so great is their misery that very frequently they
have been known deliberately to stretch themselves out on the
wet ground to die. Is not this horrible ?

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 289

I cannot understand the infatuation of people at home for
our Commander-in-Chief. He is far too old and cold to please
the army, the greater part of whom have not seen him. He
rarely stirs out, and in times of great distress (as in the late
gale, when all the tents were blown down) this negligence, in
the opinion of some, becomes almost a crime. A few words of
encouragement from him would do a great deal.*

Omar Pasha is about to land 40,000 Turkish troops on the
north side of Sevastopol. We do not expect much from them.
It would be far better if our Government paid the French
Emperor for 50,000 disciplined soldiers.

I do not expect under ordinary circumstances to be home for
another year, that is if I live so long, which in this climate is
more than doubtful.

TO HIS SISTER.

Beicos,

Constantinople,

Jan. 25th, 1855.

It is said nothing is to be done at Sevastopol until April,
but, judging from the number of dead horses just beneath the
surface, and the number of men and horses on the battle-fields
not buried at all, by that time the plague will most likely have
carried off the army.

The Russians fire on the burying parties, the brutes. When
General Cathcart's funeral was taking place, they aimed a
shell at the clergyman, whose surplice afforded an excellent
mark. The shell burst thirty yards from him, an eye-witness
told me. He never moved a muscle nor lost a tone of his
voice, and looked unconscious of the circumstance.

So much for custom and courage !

* This statement must have been based on hearsay. In " Letters from Head-
quarters" there is constant mention of Lord Raglan going out to visit the
different Divisions. One entry is specially significant : " Lord Raglan, with
his usual kindness and forethought, has been oftener lately to the 3rd Division
than any other, on account of the extreme sickness that has prevailed in it." The
Commander-in-Chief shunned ostentation, and was frequently misrepresented
because of his reticence and self-repression.

290 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

TO HIS BROTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Feb. 4th, 1855.

I wrote to you on my passage down here, but whether or
not you received my message I do not know. I am getting
better, but am still very shaky. A long walk, or a dinner
better or later than usual, makes me ill for days. Do not say
anything about all this, however, at home. I hope you are
getting well into the saddle and pulling along strongly.

My Irish friend, whom I still admire and correspond with, is
going to be married to a Scotch gentleman of fortune, to whom
she has long been engaged. There is a " screw loose," for papa
is unwilling to part with his daughter, and the lady writes to
me in great tribulation. I rather think the old boy has an
eye upon the income he draws for educating his family, who
all have small fortunes of their own.

I am forbidden to return at all to the Crimea, and am quite
sick of sea service. If I could ... for the living, which
must fall in sooner or later. But as I cannot do this, I fear I
must remain abroad.

Three days ago the Russians made a sortie upon the Right
French attack, but were driven back with the heavy loss of
one thousand killed. The French lost three hundred. On
Thursday night the French commissariat was burnt to the
ground, and stores for 8,000 men and ;^22,ooo were lost.

I see by the Times the Scamander is chartered for the
French. What a pity you have no agent here. Steam is all
the go in Turkey. A small steamer was sold for ;£'8,ooo the
other day. How much per cent, will you give me to keep an
office here on your behalf 1 1 ! Do you build locomotives as
well as steamships ? A few steamships, river boats, would
sell wonderfully well. I wish I had a handful of them now.

I am become quite certain that, in the matrimonial line, it is
in vain, nine times out of ten, to hope for just the woman you
want. I myself, as soon as I can get a house over my head,
will decide upon the kind of girl / want. I am sure it is much
better, at my time of life, to be a poor man with a small wife
and a large family than a miserable bachelor falling half in
love with all the pretty girls one meets.

There is a report that the Queen is about to be relieved by
the Orion, just commissioned, and, if so, we shall be at home

IiROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 291

in July. I shall exchange, unless you can arrange the little
matter of business I spoke of. I do not suppose you can, and
so must wait till better times.

Ever, my dear George,

Affectionately yours.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
Beicos,

Feb. 2ist, 1855.

I was very glad to receive a packet of letters from Balaklava
and England containing the arrears of my mails. I was be-
ginning to fret very much at the long silence from home.* I
am now nearly recovered in health, and am anxious to return
to the Crimea, either as a navy or an army chaplain, the latter
in preference, for they are better treated, better paid, and, what
is a good deal of consequence in military matters, of far higher
rank. John Adye has my box, and will take care of it.

I think I told you that when sick another chaplain was
appointed to the Diamond, who is supposed to attend to the
Naval Brigade. He cannot do both, I know, from sad expe-
rience, unless he has a heart of oak and a frame of brass. The
Admiralty Board treat a chaplain as they do any other officer.
He is sent here and there, and removed at pleasure ; they
consider that he can read prayers in one place as well as
another, forgetting, in any serious change, the many ties which
a clergyman has formed, and the webs which have been woven
round his heart. The chaplain of the naval hospital is ordered
to join his ship at twelve hours notice after nine months'
stay here. The temporary duties are thrown upon me. I will
not guarantee to undertake them, and shall seriously remon-
strate, for the precedent is a bad one.

Two of my friends are now chaplains to the hospital at
Kulalee, in the Bosphorus, most interesting men and full of work.

Give my kindest love to Dick and Sue, and to all our dear
ones. The post has brought me eight letters to answer, so, as
" time is up," I cannot write more.

The writer had endured many of the roughest condi-
tions of the campaign, but now his health had com-

* Kelson Stothert could well endorse Russell's remark: "The post service
here is mere organised system of disappointment."

19*

292 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

pletely broken down ; he was compelled temporarily to
forego his work at the front in the Naval Brigade, and
had rejoined his ship, the Queen, in the Bosphorus. A
certain grim acceptance of the inevitable is always
apparent in his letters, which evince, even during his
illness, his keen interest in every event of the war of
which he and everybody concerned were becoming very
weary.

At the end of January rumours were circulated that
two Sardinian Divisions, numbering about 15,000
infantry,* were to be despatched to the aid of the
Allies. This was considered a friendly and brave move
on the part of the Sardinian Government, for there was
so much uncertainty about the results of the struggle
that neutrality appeared the only safe and prudent
course.

The British admirals had undertaken to bring Omar
Pasha's army from the coasts of Bulgaria, and their
food from the Bosphorus, to the Crimea.f During
January and the early part of February, aided by two
French steamers, they effected this transport of between
30,000 and 40,000 men.J A strong force was needed
at Eupatoria to repel the Russians, who were preparing
to regain control of the port, in order that their com-
munications with Perekop might be kept open.

Though an Austrian by birth, Omar Pasha served
the Sultan well. Intelligent, and "vivacious in con-
versation," § he was a powerful influence in councils
of war, and a bold and daring leader in the field, as his
campaign against the Montenegrins, and his later ex-
ploits, proved. At Eupatoria he displayed his fitness
for the command of a great army. No time was lost
there ; on the isolated mounds or hillocks, which dotted

* " Letters from Headquarters," page 90, vol. ii.

t " Letters from the Black Sea," page 135. — Admiral Sir Leopold Heath.

X Admiral Heath relates that in January about eight hundred weekly were
being conveyed to Scutari and other hospitals, in addition to the above-mentioned
service.

§ " Life of Admiral Mends," page 266.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 293

the plain round the town, Turkish picquets were sta-
tioned as close as practicable to the enemy. On the
1 7th of February a strong Russian force, with a number
of heavy guns, advanced upon the place, but, after a
hard fight, it was repulsed and had to retire, leaving
more than 400 dead behind. During the engagement
the guns of the Valorous, Curacoa, Furious and Viper
made excellent practise ; they had " steamed in close
to support the Turkish flanks. " * The army lost
between 80 and 90 men, and the gallant Selim Pasha,
who had been in command of the Egyptian contingent,
his fellow countrymen.

During the following week Omar's troops toiled hard
to make Eupatoria safe from surprise or assault, and on
April 3rd Admiral Keppel wrote : " It is astonishing
the excellent earthworks the army has thrown up during
the last fortnight." The Russians, however, did not
again attempt to capture or to storm the place.

In the middle of February Lord Lucan was recalled
from command of the Cavalry Division. It was said
he had "remonstrated" with his chief concerning an
expression in the despatch about Balaklava. On that
occasion Lord Raglan gave him opportunity to with-
draw his objections, which he failed to do. The Duke
of Newcastle, two days before the Ministers resigned,
recalled him from his command.! Truly in time of
war favour is fickle ; and reputation is held by so
slender a thread the slightest chance may break it,
and the whilom possessor never again wrest from the
clutches of fate the honourable fame that to him may
have been more precious than life itself.

* " Life of Lord Lyons," page 284.^ — Captain Eardley Wilmot, R.N.
t " Letters from Headquarters," page 106, vol. ii.

294

CHAPTER XXV.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

March 7th, 1855.
The box arrived early this morning from John Adye. It
would have been most valuable to me at the camp, and I
shall retain all it contains until I know if there is any pro-
bability of my return. My duties at the hospital here will
soon be over, as I expect my successor's arrival at a very
early period. Strange to say, I am now doing the duty, and
occupying the position I myself suggested to the Admiralty.
My idea got to Sir J. Graham, through Lord Valentia.
I had pointed out the way a chaplain might be made
available for service at the hospital, at the same time soliciting
the appointment for myself. Lord Valentia .met with the
reply in effect that he was the wrong side in politics. A
chaplain was immediately appointed exactly in the manner I
had wished ; and now another is sent here again, although I
am ordered to do duty pro tempore. No wonder Lord Malms-
bury says the Admiralty is a sink of corruption. I heard
yesterday from a friend of mine in the Crimea that there
are only three chaplains there fit for duty. Two have died
already.

I think I mentioned to you in my last that I had had a visit
from the chaplain at Kulalee, who was sick at the same time I
was in the Crimea. He was with me last Saturday ; I went to
see him yesterday, but found him, I fear, in a dying state. I
was only allowed to look on his pale face. You may suppose
how much distressed I am.

Kindest love to all.
»♦#**»

We have just heard of the death of the Emperor of

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 295

Russia, but no one believes the story. Indeed, even if it
be true, I do not think it will make much difference in
the policy of the war.

The report was true. The news of the Turkish
victory at Eupatoria had been an unbearable humili-
ation to the Tsar ; the bitterness of repulse, by an
enemy hitherto scorned and despised, proved the blow
which, it was rumoured, was the primary cause of his
death. He expired on the and of March, after a few
days' illness, from paralysis of the lungs. Notwith-
standing the vastness of his dominions, this autocrat by
heredity and constitutional exigency, had been domi-
nated all his life by the characteristics of his race, terri-
torial jealousy, and inviolable belief, almost amounting
to superstition, in the prerogative of Russia to dictate
to the rest of Europe. Defeat in any form he could
not brook, least of all from the Turkish Army.

The despotic rule of a paramount State, fostering
the military system, necessitates the increase of the
armaments of all other Powers alert for their own
independence, but while Russia had long been pre-
paring for war, the far-reaching designs of her mon-
arch had been so disguised under his professed desire
for tranquil agreement, that, except in rare cases, the
actual ambitions which prompted his foreign policy had
been unsuspected.

In all great wars civilisation is retarded ; and, in
the fifties, the world's progress was put back by a
campaign which resulted not so much from the mis-
carriage of subtle points of diplomacy, as from the
colossal hankering of one man for his neighbour's
ground.

Events at times compel concentration of thought
and feeling, in a more or less degree, on self and
the near environment ; this was specially the case
with the Russian army in Sevastopol, and it is con-
ceivable that regret for the late Emperor must have

296 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

been brief and formal. The devotion of the soldiers
and the populace had been constantly fostered by
the priests, who had inspired the fanatical belief that
the Tsar was waging a religious war against the infidel
Turk, but the stern and immediate duty which faced
both Cossack and Muscovite excused any very fervent
display of a sorely-tested loyalty, which in their direful
straits could hardly have been spontaneous.

The rule of the Russian Empire is a crushing
weight of sovereignty, but, without idealizing his actions,
the reign of Nicholas I. well bears comparison with
the sway of most of his predecessors. *

But Nicholas Romanoff had suddenly passed from
the strife ; and the policy which governed the circum-
stances of the struggle in Crim Tartary, remained
unaltered, as our correspondent had conjectured.

The proclamation of his son Alexander II. did not
betoken a speedy end to the war, and the announce-
ment that he would join the Conference of the Great
Powers at Vienna "in a sincere spirit of concord,"
must have excited no slight surprise among the envoys
assembled in that capital. There appears an in-
congruity, bordering on the humorous, that discussions
about terms of peace should have been progressing
between the oppdnents while their armies were
engaged in bombardments, skirmishes by night, and
sorties by day. But, though the etiquette of warfare
varies with different races, there is one resource
common alike to all. The savage chiefs demand a
Palaver, the Powers a Conference. The result is
frequently the same ; those immediately concerned
rarely agree about terms of peace, but neutral chiefs
then determine with which side to cast in their lot.
The Vienna Conference effected nothing, for, as

* He might indeed have considered his life purposes futile could it have been
foretold to him that the whirligig of time would put another Nicholas upon the
throne, whose memorable proposition to the Great Powers would be regarded by
the majority of those whom it concerned, as the impracticable scheme of a
dreamer, though by others, as a test of the world's faith in God and humanity.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 297

usual, Russia wanted more than was deemed just or
expedient.

During the whole of the month of March great
apprehension was felt less Louis Napoleon, who had
had no experience of commanding military operations
in the field, should proceed, as he had intimated, to
the Crimea to take supreme command in person.
This project was judiciously opposed, but it was not till
after he and the Empress had paid a visit to Windsor
in the beginning of April, when the British Cabinet
frankly expressed disapproval, that he relinquished the
scheme. The end of the Vienna Conference had
given him serious matters to control in Paris, and it
was a relief to the Allied Commanders-in-Chief when
his decision was made known to them.

Prince Gortchakoff had now superseded Mentschikoff
as chief in command of the Russian Army.

In the beginning of April, Omar Pasha and his
Army of 25,000 men were conveyed from Eupatoria.*

In the middle of the month a cable was laid between
Bulgaria and the Crimea, thus bringing London and
Paris in touch with the Allies before Sevastopol.

Our chaplain's interesting letters now describe the
improvement in the general condition of the Allies,
though he appears to think matters could not be much
worse as regards his own position, for which it cannot
be denied that he had good cause.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queeyi,

Beicos Bay,

March nth, 1855.
Since I wrote to Carry the night before last I have had
a letter from you, and although very tired and feverish I must
scribble a few lines before going to bed, that you may have

* Accounts vary as to the number of Turkish troops brought from Eupatoria.
The above figures have the authority of Admiral Mends, G.C.B., who at the time
was in command of the Royal Albert. — " Life of Admiral Mends," page 267.

298 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

them by to-morrow's mail. George's ship, the Scamander,
is now alongside us. I have not been on board her, having
only learned this afternoon about it. She appears to be an
ugly tub, but the master is satisfied with her and says jhe
sails well. I have not heard who drew her lines.

It is hardly likely that I shall return to the Crimea as
a navy chaplain, but I would gladly do so under any
reasonable circumstances. Chaplains are wanted, and it is
my duty as much as any one else's. Most men have dear
friends and relatives who are anxious about them, so have
soldiers and sailors, but that does not hinder them from
offering their services when they are urgently required. I
should certainly like to go home first, and I should also
like, when convenient, to spend six months at Athens to
study Greek and Greek antiquities, and six months at Rome
to learn Latin and Latin antiquities, but people cannot do
what they like, and I must bide my time.

I have not yet had an opportunity of going to Scutari
to see Miss Nightingale. We are fourteen miles or so from
Stamboul. Scutari is the opposite side of the water, and
although the same side we are, yet the roads are so bad
and difficult to find that it is a day's journey on foot or
horseback from hence, unless via Stamboul.

Eber wrote to me some time ago. He has been mentioning
me in the Times, and I have been obliged to write and
contradict him. He is very careless in catching flying
rumours. I procured nothing for Carry in the Crimea, for
her letter did not come to hand while I was in a position
to gather curiosities. Then I was too much occupied to
do so. Still I have a small cross taken from the neck of
a dead Russian at Inkerman, which Eber cut off and gave
to me. I have a bayonet, which is the only relic I have
left of my own collection from Alma (Captain Mitchell having
begged all that was portable for his wife), but a table-cloth
was made for me out of two dead men's jackets by a marine,
from Alma, which Carry may have. I have also a shell
which was fired into us from Fort Constantine, and frightened
your humble servant out of his wits. It popped into the
ship's side and stuck there like a gigantic pea, just as I was
going on deck, not exploding, or I should not now be able to
sign myself.

Yours most affectionately.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 299

TO HIS m6tHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Beicos, Constantinople,

14th March, 1855.

I shall not have time just now to add Cousin Rhea to the
list of my correspondents, which is already quite as much
as I can manage with the additional duties which now
devolve upon me. When I get quit of these, nothing, I
am sure, will give me greater pleasure. This is a bad
country for " picking up " things ; nothing is to be obtained
except by purchase, and that I am just now unable to
indulge in, but I hope to send or bring home something or
other that will please you. My walks have been interrupted,
and have only once been to Stamboul since my duties at the
hospital, the only run I have had having been to Kulalee
and back, to see my friend Huleate, who has been
dangerously ill ; he is now so much better that he is going
to Malta for a month, and then returns to the Crimea. One
of the chaplains at Scutari, of the name of Proctor, died on
Sunday. He came down sick from the Crimea, never rallied,
and finally sank. However true James Earl's description
of a naval chaplain's position may be, there is no reason
that it should be so. No clergyman ought to expect such
an entire upsetting of all his previous notions of usefulness
and independence. If I have a fair offer of an army chap-
laincy, with my present views, I shall not feel it right to decline,
for chaplains are greatly wanted. They are better treated,
better worked, and better paid than we are. An army chaplain
is treated like a gentleman, ranks with a field officer, and has
24s. pay a day.

I wonder who will have the little living of Steeple Burton.
Why does not Scott take it ? I suppose he is far too much
of an Irishman to accept any benefice of so small an amount.
Poor Spring must have been sadly disappointed.

The sick are all getting better here, and the deaths are by
far fewer. The hospital at Smyrna is, or will be, shortly
opened. The situation is said to be as unhealthy as the banks
of the Bosphorous.

George's ship, the Scamander, has been at anchor near us
for some days. I have not been yet to see her. Till

300 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

yesterday, I mistook an ugly old tub, a powder ship, for her.
The Scamander is a pretty little boat, and, the captain
reports, steams well.

We have no news. It is said Odessa and Kertch are soon
to be attacked, but no one knows.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
Beicos Bay,

March 2ist, 1855.

I cannot imagine why no letters have reached me for two
mails. Each time I have been greatly disappointed. To-day
we are keeping a time of general humiliation in consequence
of the war. No forms of prayer have been sent us, and so I
have had to compose one. This afternoon we have service
again at the hospital at Therapia. Matters are mending very
much in the Crimea. As you will have seen by the papers
supplies have come in plentifully. I hope, indeed, this state
of things will continue. A week ago a battery of 20 guns was
stormed by the French and English, but after they had gained
possession they were fairly shelled out of it again. Report
also says something of a smart affair having taken place on
the coast of Circassia, between our ships and some Russian
forts, but of it I have no particulars.

I have just been reading Eber's letter from Eupatoria
to the Times. He gives a very glowing account of the Turks
and of Omar Pasha, but in a private letter to me he finds
great fault with them for want of all kinds of organization.
Lord Raglan is looking up in the world, it seems ; and Lord
" Look-on " looking down. The latter has been execrated by
the cavalry from the very first for his stolidity, carelessness, and
conceit ; and it was always predicted what would follow if he
ever actually led the troops into action. I wish the new Tsar
would give up peaceable possession of Sevastopol, but as that
is not likely we must take it by force, and then we may have
some prospect of peace. The Turks are getting very jealous
of the French and English. I really do not think they will
ever get the former out of Constantinople. The Commandant
at Kulalee, who speaks a little English, thus expresses his
opinion : " Bye-bye, French stay at Stamboul, English at
Scutari. I not commandant, but English Consul." He is a
jolly old Turk, and reads and exhibits with great glee an

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 301

English Bible, and a prayer book in the Turkish language, of
which extensive library I contributed one-half.

My best love, mother, for you and all.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Beicos Bay,

March 21st, 1855.

Have you had an opportunity of putting my name down
again on the books of Worcester College ? It will be necessary
to lodge the caution money (;£^2o), and that is all, although I
have not got it to spare. All costs until I take my degree will
come out of that. I have yet three terms to keep. Do let me
ask you to take charge of this for me.

We are all anxiety about the decision of the Emperor
Alexander II. It is true his proclamation is warlike enough,
but that of course. Still, we hope much from his known
desire for peaceful measures. Nothing can take place until
Sevastopol is yielded or taken, or at least dismantled of its
fortifications, either by force of arms or treaty. Mr. Bright,
doubtless, would advocate the acceptance of peace upon any
terms. However, the French will not, I think, be contented
even with peace. There must be something behind the scenes
in the projected visit of the Emperor Napoleon to the seat of
war. No wonder the Cabinets of Europe so strongly object to
the measure.

To-day we are observing the day of humiliation on account
of the war. We have had a short service on board, and I
have to officiate again at the hospital the other side of the
Bosphorus this afternoon. No form of prayer nor anything of
that sort is ever supplied to us.

The latest report about ourselves is that the three sailing
ships remaining on the station are to return to the anchorage at
Katcha for a squadron of reserve ; in that case we shall have
a summer as well as a winter spent upon the sea, without
setting foot on shore. I do not like the idea at all. Eber is
now with Omar Pasha, and I have just read his account of the
Turkish troops. The weather is very changeable, sometimes
wet and cold, then hot ; in another month it will be too hot to
venture out at mid-day. I hope to hear from you soon ; it is
two mails since I had a letter.

Ever affectionately yours.

302 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

March 2Sth, 1855.

I must write you a line before I go to bed, although very tired
with my day's work. The heat of the climate (with a double
service and a, great deal of sick visiting) is very fatiguing.
Some of my parishioners are five or six miles from here. We have
quite a congregation on Sundays when the weather is fine.
The captains of merchant vessels and their wives, officers, and
officers' wives living at Therapia, come off to church, attracted
by the novelty of a service on board the Queen. To-day we
had the addition of two colonels of the Guards, who had been
sent down here to look after 400 men of the Brigade of Guards
of whom no trace nor record was to be found ! They were
sent sick from the. Crimea, and then all trace was lost. They
had been to Smyrna, Abydos, Scutari and Kulalee, to the
various hospitals. All but 90 are now accounted for. This is
an odd case for the Parliamentary Commission, but I hope it
will never reach them. Such is " Glory."

At the hospital at Therapia many English came to the
service, there being no chaplain nor church nearer than Con-
stantinople. At Bujukdere I have a service also in a small
way among some sick ladies at the hotel, so you see my hands
are full just now. However, my predecessor will arrive next
week. He sailed from England on the 14th.

The books Mr. East kindly sent me have arrived, and the
hamper containing the bath, etc., etc., has again come out from
home, having been within 100 yards of this ship, but was-
put by mistake into another man-of-war and was taken back
to England.

TO HIS BROTHER.

Globe Hotel, Pera,

April nth, 1855.
I have been spending the whole day in endeavouring to
make out a case in your favour.

I find your Liverpool informants were quite correct in sup-
posing that no orders would be given for steamers by parties
here. There are no capitalists whose money is so employed,
although all agree with me that there is a great opening for
any enterprising company upon these waters. The Turkish

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 303

Government have a few steamers plying on the Bosphorus, and
the Austrian Lloyds have one or two badly-found steamers
which run to Trebizond, and on the other side of the Black
Sea to the stations at the mouth of the Danube. Passage
boats are wanted, I am told, in great numbers, some for the
Greek Islands. And now the Black Sea will be altogether
thrown open ; the whole of the provinces of Servia, Wallachia
and Bulgaria will form, it is said, one immense granary, and
will ship their corn at every place on the seaboard. A trade
is about to begin in these parts such as has hitherto not
existed, but it will have to be carried on by English capitalists.
Hitherto the Austrians and French have monopolised it.

I am afraid the prospect will not suit you under the cir-
cumstances you mentioned to me. My own idea was, when I
wrote to you, that a company like that of Newport, with boats
of the same class, would be found to be exceedingly useful.

I did not mention to Grace your offer of a percentage ; it
was not, I thought, worth while negotiating with him about
nothing. If you think it advisable I will do so.

Any other suggestion or information you want I will try
and obtain for you.

TO HIS SISTER.

H.M.S. Queen,

April 1 2th, 1855.

I was much obliged to you for your last letter, and the
paper containing an account of the hospitable reception of the
sick and wounded who passed through Bath. For the future
the expression, " Go to Bath," will be of an amiable sentiment,
instead of conveying the idea of disgust and unpleasantness.
The affair was rather overdone, but, entre nous, the good
Bath people take a greater delight in " humbug " than any I
ever saw.

We heard of the death of the Emperor of Russia on the 5th,
but nobody believed it. It seems it was known in England
two days sooner. What the political effect will be, even to
this hour, no one here ventures to prognosticate. Russian
politics are such ticklish subjects. The Emperor, for the time
being, fears for his life, if he offends the popular party.
Chateaubriand once said of Turkey that it was a " despotism
tempered by regicide." I see of late the expression has been
applied to Russia also, and with a fearful justness of ex-
pression.

304 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

I forgot to mention in my letter to my mother that Jenner's
money has been acknowledged long since, and was expended
in butter and oranges for the sick and wounded at Therapia
Hospital. These two things are not allowed by the Service,
and the poor fellows were outrageously glad to get " a scrape "
for their dry bread, and a juicy orange to moisten their lips. I
explained to them where the money came from, and, if Jenner
had been there at the time, he would have been the most
popular man in the whole of European Asia. Most of these
patients are removed, some to England others by death or
recovery. Their places are quickly filled. The new chaplain
has not arrived. He takes his time about it. I have not been
near the hospital for nearly three weeks, having been out of
the ship but twice until yesterday. The last report is (I think
a true one) that the steamers go to Odessa to destroy it, and
the sailing ships blockade Sevastopol. We are ordered to
prepare for sea immediately. The army medals have arrived.
The navy are to have some, I believe.

P.S. — The last chaplain who died at Scutari was a man of
the name of " Proctor," the curate of Dr. Wordsworth at
Stanford-in-the-Vale, and Mr. Geare's successor. He was
ordained priest when I was ordained deacon. I regret to say
he has left a wife and family.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

April 15th, 1855.

I have returned here after my little s^jour at Constantinople,
from which place I wrote to you. I occupied my usual posi-
tion in church to-day, but had great difficulty in getting
through my duties.

I much fear that I have lost one of my dear messmates ;
Douglas, the junior lieutenant, a most promising and beloved
officer.

You will have heard -that the bombardment has been recom-
menced with great effect in the town, and some active batteries.
Report says the Russians have sent out a flag of truce, offering
terms, but none of us believe that. It is also said that two of
our midshipmen have fallen. Steeled as most of us have been
to sudden losses of our friends in this war, yet we have now
had so long a cessation that our natural feelings had, in a

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 305

measure, resumed their sway. We are inexpressibly anxious
to know the worst. I pray God the news may not be true.

The writer was deeply attached to Lieutenant
Douglas ; they had both joined the Queen at the same
time. The report of his death proved correct ; he was
killed by a round shot in the twenty-one-gun battery.
As young Evelyn Wood saw his body being carried
out, the handsome face wore the kindly smile so familiar
to all his friends, "tender and true," to the last.

3o6

CHAPTER XXVI.

The British Army for some time had been keenly-
anxious to assault Sevastopol, and our chaplain's
letters show that this desire was shared by the Navy,
but the French held back ; and thus Lord Raglan was
compelled to acquiesce.

The second bombardment commenced on the 9th of
April, when the guns of the Allies opened fire simul-
taneously, and continued with vigour for ten days. It
resulted in great loss of life to all the belligerents ; the
French suffered severely, but the Russians, maintaining
an heroic attitude under the hottest fire, were burdened
with hundreds of wounded, while the list of their dead
far exceeded that of their enemy. From both Malakofif
and Mamelon special attention had been directed to the
British Right Attack, where the Naval Brigade batteries
were subjected to persistent shelling. The splendid
bravery of the officers in the 21 -gun and Diamond
batteries, and of the sailors who manned them, has
been often recounted. Lieutenants Twyford and
Douglas were both killed, and Lord John Hay was
wounded. There is a typical entry in Keppel's diary
on the 13th April .... " 76 seamen hors de
combat, and Lord Raglan asking for more men from
the ships. They are decidedly the best shots, but take
no care of themselves." They took very good care of
their guns, however ; and with such a commander as
Peel, who always insisted on getting oerilously near the
enemy, it was not probable that his men would be very

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 307

cautious about their own personal safety. According to
Sir Evelyn Wood, who writes from memory of what
actually occurred under his own eyes, their heavy loss
in the bombardment was in a great degree attributable
to the fact that after each shot the ship trucks (on
which the guns were) having sprung back, had to be
hauled again to the parapet, and, during the operation,
the pace having to be regulated by the small truck
wheels, the Blue-jackets were terribly exposed to the
enemy's fire. Their tenacity and courage were quite
beyond praise.

It is well known that the physical condition of the
Naval Brigade all the winter had been better than that
of the troops ; in the worst of times their camp had
been the liveliest, and had often been favourably con-
trasted. In going through it the visitor had not to
flounder in mud, for there were actual paths ; and
happily the tents there were dry. The habits of
seamen are adaptable, and in emergency they are
usually full of resource. Jack's capacity for turning
everything he could lay his hands upon to good
account served him well in the Crimea. His clothes
in the spring of '55 — no longer uniforms — were patched
but never ragged ; and he wore the nondescript
garments his fertile brain prompted him to annex, with
his own peculiar nautical grace and swagger. Even the
Welsh wigs, which the good people of England, who
sent out everything' and anything they could devise for
their heroes, had forwarded to the Naval Brigade, did
not ill-become the wearers. The wig was made of
grey wool, and, having two or three rows of curls round
the lower part, resembled that worn by a profession
not regarded with much reverence by sailors. When
first donned, his mates accosted Jack as "a blessed
lawyer," so to save himself from aspersions of this
kind upon his character, it was the fashion to tuck in
the curls, which made the comfortable headgear less
conspicuous.

3o8 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

Even after the April bombardment an assault was
still the topic of the war councils, but the effect of the
intrepid, daring, and useful offensive works, carried out
by the French, was rendered at this time of less avail
by the vacillation at their Headquarters, and by the
unexpected instructions received from Paris. Lord
Raglan had now much to endure, and much to perplex
him ; his responsibilities were arduous in the extreme.
The following letters indicate the impatience which the
policy he was compelled to follow, induced among
Englishmen, whom privation and hardship had not
deprived of eager determination to do their best
whatever the work might be.

Kelson Stothert's chivalrous nature revolted from
injustice whether it affected his friends or himself, and
we find him singularly earnest about the grievances
which existed in all departments of Naval adminis-
tration.

TO HIS FATHER.

Off Sevastopol,
26th April, 1855.
I have just finished a letter to Admiral Walcot, asking him
to take up the case of our first lieutenant, a friend of my own,
who has shewn me great kindness and support since I have
been in the Queen. He took the ship into action — our
commander being absent in the trenches — and sustained a
difficult part the whole of that day. We have had not one
promotion for the affair, and are very desirous to see Whyte
rewarded. The private reason we suspect is, that no pro-
motions were given because the Times correspondent was
known to have been on board, although of course the late
Admiral and Admiralty cannot say so. However they have
closed the Gazette against us. I have told Admiral Walcot
that I am sure you will join with me in considering it a
personal favour if he will take up the matter. Whyte is the
only first lieutenant who took a ship into action and was not
promoted, and as we played a distinguished part on that day,
earning the public notice of the present Commander-in-Chief
during the battle, the neglect is very marked. This is a fitting

ONE OF THE NAVAL BRIGADE

WITH WELSH WIG.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 309

subject to be mentioned in the House, as it relates to public
matters. If I knew Captain Scobell I would write to him.

There is a talk of going in daily, but of course nothing is
known. The troops are very impatient to attack the place
with the bayonet. The French are looked upon with con-
siderable anxiety, for they are no better soldiers, if so good, as
the Russians themselves. The latter do not care for them in
the least, but they look upon us with vast respect. If we had
but 50,000 more men our position would be far more comfort-
able. The state of the Army is such that it cannot advance .
nor retreat. If it does not conquer it must surrender. It is
hemmed in by the Russians on all sides but the sea, and
re-embarkation is impossible. Now we are here there is
nothing said of our going to Eupatoria. I do not know what
we came for. My cold is better, but the cough and deafness
still remain. I hope to hear from you soon.

TO HIS MOTHER.

Off Sevastopol,

26th April, 1855.

We arrived here about three hours ago, having left the
Bosphorus on Sunday morning. The wind was light but, for
the most part, adverse, so our passage was a good deal
delayed. We find the Fleet much as we left it, and Sevastopol
looking not a whit the worse than it was before. The firing is
very slack on both sides, and we hear that the Allied Generals
have made up their minds that nothing but the bayonet will
sufifice. A storm is to be attempted, with what success God
only can tell. Much apprehension is felt as to the probable
conduct of the French upon such an occasion ; with all their
dash, and show, and chivalry, they are felt to be soldiers who
have no more repugnance to running away than to advancing,
if the " fortune of war " demands it. At Alma, with all their
masses hurled against the stupid Russians, they were alarmed
at the check they experienced, and hurried the British troops
by their entreaties up the face of the cannon-lined hill. They
themselves acknowledge that at Inkerman they could not have
stood alone, and in many various encounters with the Russians
they have lost their prestige greatly, so that there is terrible
anxiety to know how they will behave in the rapidly ap-
proaching crisis.

It is quite doubtful whether the ships will again go in
or not. The Naval Brigade has been much cut up of late.

310 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

and many men have been taken from the Fleet to supply-
death vacancies, so that perhaps we shall not do so. A few
days ago the English and French Admirals went in under the
forts to " have a shy" at the town. The Frenchman, just as
he got within fire, found something wrong, he said, and
requested the "British Lion" not to engage, much to the
chagrin, disgust, and anger of the chief.

I posted the Turkish bag to Lilly at Constantinople. The
only thing I sent by the officer of the Sanspareil was the tin
case containing the drawings. I am afraid I cannot get one
for George ; they were published by subscription, and although
a good many were sold to merchant captains, I believe none
are now left. However, I will write and see what I can do ;
doubtless a copy of the print will be taken and published in
England.

I wrote to Admiral Walcot last mail, thanking him for
his kindness in offering to do me a service. I have written
again to him this mail, to ask him if he can do anything
for our first lieutenant, who took the ship into action with
500 men. After being under fire twenty minutes we drew
into a new position close under the enemy's batteries. The
officer, who is of old standing, but of no interest, has been left
unpromoted, a most unprecedented instance, and younger men,
who have done comparatively nothing, but have influence,
have been placed over his head. Captain Michell cannot
speak of it without tears in his eyes, but the Admiralty refuse
to do more than " consider his claim," which is the formal way
of refusal. I have asked Admiral Walcot to mention the
matter in the House, and have said that both my father and I
would take his doing so as a personal favour. Whyte is a
good friend of mine, who has shown me great attention,
and given me much support. I do not think now of the Army
chaplaincy, nor shall I feel disappointment if it does not come
to me. I have experienced so many disappointments that a
new one will not affect me much. I wish you could send me
out some books by the first man-of-war that comes. I have
nothing except what I have read again and again ; the greater
part of my books are at Stamboul.

We may have to go to Odessa, or to Eupatoria, or perhaps
to remain here. No one knows.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 311

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Off Sevastopol,

May 1st, 1855.

The mail came in yesterday, but neither letters nor papers
for me.

It is difficult to say what we shall have to do. An Expe-
dition is to go to Kertch with troops, but although some
line-of-battle ships are to be despatched thither, we are not
to go. We shall have nothing to undertake except to remain
at anchor in case we may be wanted ; I do not know anything
more disagreeable. We are about two-and-a-half miles off
shore, and none of us have as yet been able to land, although
many of our friends have come to see us. I am anxious to get
to Balaklava, and up to the camp, but it is a long way off.

Captain Christie, the agent of transports at Balaklava, who
was said to have been the cause of all the confusion there, was
to have been tried by court-martial. In other words, he was
to have been sacrificed to popular indignation. Having been
a distinguished naval officer in days past, his fate has attracted
much commiseration, especially as many knew he was simply
the victim of circumstances and the atrocious system which he
was obliged to administer. There is not a single witness for
the prosecution against him. However, a more powerful agent
than the mockery of justice called court-martial has " stopped
proceedings " : anxiety and misery have done their work, and
the old man by this time, I doubt not, has breathed his last.
At Balaklava he was obliged to submit to the orders and
regulations of two other naval officers, and in accordance with
the rules of the Service, although at the head of a public
department, could not call his soul his own. And yet no
public demonstration is made against Admiral Boxer. Poor
Captain Christie, a distinguished, intelligent officer, a con-
scientious and pious man, doing his duty as far as his
opportunity and ability permitted, is fairly hunted to death,
while Boxer rules rampant, and will eventually receive the
thanks of his grateful country.

I am rather better than I was, and as the weather gets
warmer hope to shake off my cough. Kindest love to all.
Ever, my dearest mother, affectionately yours.

312 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
Off Sevastopol,

May 8th, 1855.

No letter from home again last mail, and I am very-
anxious, to hear how George is. I suppose you have written,
but the letters, as usual, have missed their destination. Jenner
wrote to me, but I suppose he had not heard of George very
lately.

I mentioned to you the Expedition to Kertch, which sailed,
I think, on the 4th. On Sunday they all came back again,
having been recalled when within sight of their destination,
and the prey within their reach, in consequence of a tele-
graphic message which came from London, the telegraph
now reaching from London to the Crimea. The reason no
one knows, but conjecture is very busy in trying to dis-
cover causes. The Army suggests that Sir George Brown,
who went in command of troops, and is the martinetest
martinet who ever lived, had forgotten his stock and razor,
and brought the Expedition back to fetch them ! The proba-
bility is that, as General Canrobert was known to have
altogether disapproved of it, he privately obtained the
Emperor's sanction to have it recalled. Our General and
Admiral are furious with vexation and disappointment.
There is much reason for "growling." For this Expedition
the French promised a contingent of 8,000 men and a large
force of artillery ; when they arrived off Kertch 7,000 were all
that were there, and only three batteries. When Sir George
Brown discovered the trick that had been played him he
almost knocked the French General down. Canrobert and
the dead St. Arnaud were both tools of Louis Napoleon,
and men of no great personal character. It is said here the
Emperor is expected. I have been twice to the Naval Camp,
and am more and more convinced that we shall never become
masters of Sevastopol by force of arms. Every assailable spot
townward, inland, and seaward, is fortified against us, and with
their exhaustless resources, and matchless perseverance, there
is nothing they will not do. We, on the other hand, with a
comparatively small force, have seven leagues of fortifications
to guard, and are not so well provided with munitions of war
as we ought to be. The condition of the troops is exceedingly

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 313

good. They are healthy and cleanly, having learned the
siniple art of washing their skins, and afterwards dressing
themselves, without having a sergeant or a subaltern to stand
over them and direct their operations. Half the men died
last winter, I am sure, from not knowing how to live.

I hope you will not fail to let me hear how George goes on
by every mail. My cold is better one day and worse another,
according to the weather, and the way I sleep at night, strange
to say, but I am getting on.

A Flotilla of thirty vessels started on the 3rd of May
for Kertch ; the Expedition w^as, however, ignominiously
cut short. Admiral Bruat, Sir Edmund Lyons, and
Sir George Brown were the gallant commanders ; a
small French steamer, bearing instructions, by order of
Canrobert, overtook them, and they had to return,
but it was almost impossible for our eager Naval
Commander to back out of any daring enterprise
which might lead to deeds of valour. It is imaginable
that, on such an occasion, the resemblance to the hero of
Trafalgar would perceptibly deepen on his countenance.
(This likeness was not displeasing to Lyons, and it
was said that he did not discourage the lock of which
had a way of lying on his brow Nelson-wise.)* With
his anger well under control, he endeavoured to induce
that strictest of soldiers. Sir George Brown, to disobey
the French message, and to undertake the Expedition
single-handed. But the General was more stern in
his views, and although Lord Raglan had sent him
assurance privately, "to go on without the French
if he thought there was a good chance of success, and
he would take the responsibility," Sir George knew

* In the Times, November 24th, 1858, the day after Lord Lyons died, occurs
the following description : " He had the same features, the same complexion, the
same profusion of grey, inclining to white, hair. No one could see him without
being struck by the resemblance, not only in appearance but also in reality there
was something of Nelson in Lord Lyons. He had the same devotion to his
profession ; he had the same activity in duty ; he had the same free and frank
bearing ; he had the same art of winning the affection of associates and subordi-
nates alike. He inspired a. similar confidence in all with whom he came in
contact."

314 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

how imprudent separated action would prove to the
Alliance.

Keppel, however, on the 5th instant, expressed Ms
opinion in his usual frank and optimistic way : "Had
he consented," he wrote, " on the appearance of our
top-gallant yards above the horizon, the Kertch forts
which had been prepared a month previously would
have been blown up, the war ended, and millions saved
to the country."

Canrobert's indecision had been evinced on so many
occasions that the Commanders-in-Chief of the French
and English Navies, and Lord Raglan, were alike
inclined to regret that so much responsibility was in-
vested in him ; and it was no small relief to them, and
to the ofificers holding highest positions in the Crimea,
that on the 19th May he gave up the Chief command
to General P^lissier.

During May the Allies were joined by a Sardinian
Army of 1 5,000 troops under General Delia Marmora.
These perfectly equipped spic and span soldiers must
have formed a curious contrast to the English and
French troops, upon whom rough wear and tear, and
innumerable unexpected emergencies, had left their
indelible marks — on feature and fortune, and on gait
and garments also.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Off Sevastopol,

May nth, 1855.
We are cleared for action, and I am writing in our ward
room, now open to the winds of heaven, all the windows
being taken away and turned into ports, and great guns
run out through them. The rain is pouring down, and a
cold bleak wind cutting one to the bone in spite of great
coats, &c. I am "stone deaf" for the present, and my cold
troublesome as you may suppose under the circumstances,
but, with these exceptions, am very well, so that there is no
longer any cause for anxiety about me.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 315

We are all full of growls at the new taxes. It really is
very hard that we who have to endure the " battle and
the breeze," our chances of fever, wet, cold, dysentery, cholera,
hardship, and anxiety, in far greater proportion than you
in England, should also be made to feel the pressure of
taxation in a greater proportion than you do. We pay
precisely the same enormous income tax, and those who have
families suffer equally with yourselves in indirect taxation,
with this addition, that our expenses here are very great,
the necessaries of life having to be purchased at a long
distance from home, with a war profit added to the extra
cost of freight and merchants' percentage which each article
bears. Those who, like myself, insure their lives have to pay
an additional sum of five or six guineas per cent, upon their
policies. You know the Government contribute nothing to
our mess, except the ship's rations. In the Army a camp
allowance is given which we do not enjoy. This helps them
out, but many there are in evil case. 1 am told (how true it
is I know not) that numbers of those who have returned
home have been compelled to do so, from utter inability
to contend against their heavy expenditure, and at the same
time keep their families from poverty. We have no prize
money now as there was in the last war. I really do think
something ought to be done to help us out. The labourer
is in all cases worthy of his hire. If a fair day's work is
expected from officers of the Army and Navy, surely they
have a right to expect a fair day's wage ?

I told you of the return of the ill-fated Kertch Expedition.
It turns out that the intrigues of Canrobert ruined it ; he
will exercise a baneful influence upon other matters if means
are not taken to recall him.

A sortie was made against the English lines the night
before last, which we saw, but have only just heard the
particulars. The enemy was discovered approaching, and
the covering party retired within the trenches on our side
to await their coming. Not a gun was fired (although every
cannon was loaded with grape and canister, and every rifle
pointed over the parapet) until the enemy was within pistol
shot. Then a storm of shot struck them like a sword.
They were seen no more. A few only escaped.

The rest remained.

3i6 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

TO HIS BROTHER.

Off Sevastopol,

May I2th, 1855.

You will have heard by this time that we have arrived
here. Things are much the same as they were before we
started. The late bombardment has had no practical effect
whatever.

Thank you very much for your promise to pay the bills.
They prey upon my mind greatly. I wish I had enough
to pay them all myself, or enough to spend some time in
France to learn sufficient mathematics and French to pass
for naval instructor. I should earn nearly ;£^300 a year,
and in a short time could get rid of these things, and put
by money besides.

I have by this mail written to Grace and Hansom, asking
for information. I hope I have not done wrong ; no other
course occurs to me. The Greek Government is insolvent,
and I would have nothing to do with them. Can you get
an introduction to Layard ? He knows more about Con-
stantinople than any man in England, having lived upon
his wits here for some years.

I think your plan of going to Vienna and Trieste a good
one, and I will write to my friend Eber to ask who you can
apply to there ; probably he knows.

I will take all the care I can of your friends when they
arrive. Campaigning is fine work now. Fine air, lots of
exercise, plenty of food and clothing, nothing like the horrible
time last year.

You shall hear from me again soon.

TO HIS MOTHER.

Off Sevastopol,

May 19th, 1855.

1 wrote to Russell to tell him he has made a great mistake
about there being no chaplain to the Brigade.

The weather is becoming extremely hot here, and makes
walking to the camp and back very arduous and dangerous.
I went there two days ago with a friend, and during our visit to
the trenches, through the whole of the Right Attack. It was
exceedingly interesting, but very risky. The Russians, as well
as ^\e, have many mortar batteries. I have seen a good deal of

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 317

shot and gun shell practice, but never mortars before. These

are terrible engines. The day we were there they were firing

them on both sides. The shells are 13 inches in diameter, and

take two men to lift. Fancy one of these enormous projectiles

coming down 1 The effect is tremendous. Just as we were

entering the covered way leading to the trenches, one fell on

a wooden platform and penetrated 4j^ feet through beams of

oak bolted firmly together, uprooting all. We saw the wreck

as we passed. Look-out men are posted at intervals to watch

for shell. When the cry of " Mortar, mortar ! " is raised,

hurry scurry is the order of the day. All eyes are fixed on

the advancing monster. He can be seen slowly coming on

about half-a-mile in the air, and the thoughts of all are

intensely occupied to discover where he will fall. The only

plan is to stand quite still until the rushing mass is close upon

you ; then if shelter can be found at a few yards, make for it ;

if not, throw yourself flat on the ground and trust in God. We

had not been more than a quarter of an hour in the trenches

when a look-out man was shot in the head at the immense

distance of 2,000 yards by a rifle bullet. He was of our ship,

of the name of Hammond, and I fear his wound is fatal.

A mortar (the first I had ever seen close) advanced towards
us in a * dignified way (for a Russian) in oscillating method,
like King Clicquot when he walks, with a slow whistling
sound. It had a certain air of benignity, too, when compared
with the horrid rush of round shot and gun shell, as if it
would say, in imitation of the late lamented Nicholas, " Good
morning, bono Ingleesh, how happy I am to see you ; pray
don't disturb yourselves good people. I am coming for your
good, just to show you how strong and kind our Father and
Emperor is. Whew ! whew ! it is warm to-day, gentlemen.
Whew ! what nice trenches these are ! Whew ! I see that red
spot is where a friend of mine breakfasted this morning.
Whew ! don't be alarmed I repeat, gentlemen ; I am only pay-
ing you a morning call, on the word of a gentleman. Whew !
whew 1 a Russian gentleman that is. Where shall I sit down ?
Allow me just there ; whew ! don't run away, gentlemen ; whew !
my blessings on you. Ha ! I have you now ! Flop ! fizz !
bang ! "

The shell I have spoken of came to earth about ten yards to
our rear. As it touched the ground, some fell flat, and others
ran like rabbits. I seized a small middy, who stood astonished
at the disturbance, and kindly ( ! ) shoved him down forcibly
into a hole in the battery, and bolted round a corner myself

3i8 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

just as the explosion took place, receiving a charge of dust and
stones in my leg that made me limp for some time. There
was a great laugh against me when it was discovered that I
had jammed the youngster into a magazine, the most
dangerous of all places at that especial juncture. I assure
you the sensation was very unpleasant when the horrid
missile covered us all with dust and mud. No one was hurt,
but one of the Blue-jackets had his pipe knocked out of his
mouth with a splinter. This is a fact, for I saw it with my
own eyes. The man with the greatest sangfroid asked if we
could give him another light. It was the third time he had
been served so.

After this flurry we went to see one of our mortars loaded
and fired, and had the satisfaction of hoping that some
Russian " Papas " had been as much frightened as we had
been. They are fat little guns, about 1 3 inches in the bore,
and are fired towards the sky, the shell descending in a half
circle. One end of the mortar contains a chamber which is
filled with powder through a funnel, the shell being placed
over this. Sometimes they range four miles, it is said. After
we had seen all in the rear trenches and visited our friends,
we began our progress towards the Russian lines. This is
awkward work. The parapet is so low that a tall man must
stoop, because if the top of his head is seen a bullet goes
through it. The upper part (of the parapet, not the head) is
not ball-proof, but the base is impervious to shot. About
every ten minutes we had to crowd under the parapet on our
hands and knees, the shot tipping the earthworks and
scattering dust and stones all about and going screaming on
beyond us. Our ear soon became accustomed to the dis-
tinction of sounds, and we could tell almost as well as our
guide what was coming. In one or two cases he merely
" sold " us. At the corners of each " gap " the trench is
enfiladed by the Russian rifles. We did not know this at first
until " ping ! ping 1 " sounded so unpleasantly close that we
began to think what it was. Our guide, one of our Blue-jackets,
never warned us, and we were only brought to our senses by
an officer politely enquiring " what we wished sent home ? "
and that " he would be happy to do what was necessary for
us 1 " Further enquiries showed that we had only just
missed the common fate of incautious loiterers, an interesting
fact which our pleasant guide then forcibly corroborated by
returning to the dangerous spot and bringing back a bullet
hot and flattened, and which we had heard and seen close to

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 319

us. After that we trusted " Jack " no more. We were told
to rush past these comers, advice which we found was
absolutely necessary the nearer we approached the Russian
sharp-shooters. Another fright we had after this, which still
more served to decrease our confidence in " Jack ashore." We
heard a mortar shell whistling towards us, and our man with
great confidence predicted that it was going over us. We
turned to look, but the stunning noise of the rush of the shot
and the fuse made us quickly turn again ; and even before
we had time to prostrate ourselves the shell burst right over
our heads. The splinters flew far and wide, but not a speck
of dust or iron touched any of us, although we distinctly felt
the blaze of the powder. This is one of the Providential
escapes that hourly occur. The fuse had burst short, having
been doubtless intended to go far beyond. Had the shell
burst higher up the splinters would have reached us. Had it
burst further away, they would have caught us as the circle
expanded. Had it been nearer, we should have been scorched
by the heat. It was no cowardice in me to thank God for
our escape.

About every hundred yards you come upon a large red spot
which marks the site of a casualty. Here and there an
exploded magazine which has sent some few into the air. A
small splinter of shell will cut a man in two ; such is the force
of the explosive charge each shell contains. The wall of these
large shells is 4 inches thick, and the ball 13 inches in
diameter — that is, 3 ft. 3 ins. round. Many of them have
musket balls mixed up with the powder inside the shell. A
shell shot from a gun always bursts forward, so that if it
-once passes you it is harmless as a round shot ; but a
" whistling Dick " coming from the clouds scatters in all
directions as soon as it touches the ground. The calculations
are so exact that few shells burst until they reach their
-destination.

Next week we are going to see the Left Attack, and have
made up our minds to creep into our rifle pits which are only
100 yards from the Russians. We could not get nearer than
500 yards the other day. If I escape then with life and limb,
I shall not often run the risk again. It takes a long time to
get used to these sights. If duty calls I should never demur,
I hope ; but some of our most gallant officers, who live in the
midst of these scenes and never suffer personal feeling to
sway them for a moment, confess that a feeling of anxiety and
suspense is never absent from their minds. We have heard

320 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

more particulars of the death of my beloved and lamented
messmate, Douglas.

I did not see John Adye, not having time to go to Head-
quarters. Many of my old parishioners wish me to come back.
The bombardment, as I told you in my last, was a failure,
although we had another chance of taking the place. Strange
to say, the Russians had not known of the approaching attack,
and had marched their forces to the rear of Balaklava when
the fire commenced. There were not 7,000 men in the fortress.
I only wish we had known it. Our being cleared for action
has again condemned me to the dirt, the pestilential air, and
darkness of a cockpit cabin. Such is the life we lead.

I must tell you a good story of two of our men. During
the late bombardment these gentlemen quarrelled when at the
gun, and, in consequence of an epithet one applied to the
other, they retired to the rear of the battery, and, regardless
of shot and shell, had a quiet " set to." When the little affair
was decided to their mutual satisfaction, they returned amiably
together to fight the enemy !

TO HIS BROTHER.

Off Sevastopol,

May 26th, 1855.
The French have taken the field and crossed the Tchemaya,
the Russians retiring before them. A large Expedition has
been sent to Kertch, which, if successful, will march northwards
towards Balaklava. Then on the north side of Sevastopol
Omar Pasha will advance so as to invest the place on all
sides. Then and then only shall we become masters of it.
The weather is frightfully hot and prevents almost all exercise.
I wish we were well out of this. I hear you are better, and I
am very glad.

32'

CHAPTER XXVII.

One of the first concerted acts which General Pdlissier,
after being appointed Commander-in-Chief, helped to
organize, was the second Expedition to Kertch.
Reinforcements permitted the French on this occasion
to contribute a larger number of troops. Of Infantry
it was agreed that they should provide 7,000, the
English 3,000, and the Turks 5,000. The French
promised three batteries of artillery, while the English
and Turks were each to supply one battery. Sir
George Brown was again given the chief command,
and the Admirals were Sir Edmund Lyons, Rear-
Admiral Houston Stewart, and Admiral Bruat.

The start was made on May 22nd, and the Expedition
proved eminently successful. The Queen, being a
sailing ship, did not join the Squadron. The enemy
showed no resistance at Kertch ; they blew up their
magazines and retired, and the town was occupied
without any need for fighting. On the approach of the
British ships at Yenikali, the garrison followed the
example of Kertch ; its magazines were destroyed, and
it surrendered almost without opposition ; and on the
Sea of Azof, to which Western men-of-war had never
before penetrated, rode our naval vessels. Grain, guns,
and ammunition were captured ; and the occupation of
Yenikali by Turkish troops was deemed a convenient
prelude to a projected attempt on the Circassian coast.

Captain Lyons, son of the Admiral, and several other
naval commanders, distinguished themselves at this

32 2 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

time, rapidly going from point to point, harassing the
enemy, and destroying his transports carrying grain
and stores for the Russian Armies : cutting off his line
of supply was a signal advantage to the Allies.

Well satisfied as were those concerhed in the Expe-
dition with its results, it was a chagrin to some of them
that the Turkish troops did much unnecessary damage
in the town of Kertch, the most wanton act being the
wreck and ruin of the rare and valuable contents of the
Museum. How much, or how little, destruction should
be perpetrated by victorious troops in a captured town,
is not yet a canon in the etiquette of warfare, and it
will never be evolved by the student of " the divine
part "* of that art. Most of the soldiers of civilized
nations are at their best when the need is sorest, but
licence, resulting from victory, has often developed very
ignoble traits.

Every General has, doubtless, his own personal moral
code for emergencies, but if ever ideal warfare — para-
doxical as the term may appear— be carried on, looting,
and all its inevitable accompaniments, will be relegated
to barbarians, and to those troops who deliberately fire
upon flags of truce. Among the latter, however, can-
not be arraigned the foe who continues firing till the
flag is seen, for it is not always perceived by the whole
of the field engaged, and some shots, not intended to be
valedictory, may meanwhile be fired without actual
determined defiance of recognized rules. An incident
of this kind unfortunately gives rise to much wildness
of speech, but an enemy's humane or inhumane cus-
toms should rather be judged on the broader lines
afforded by his uniform treatment of wounded prisoners,
than by an act which may have resulted from lack of
knowledge of what was actually occurring. But when
a town is already captured, to destroy forts, buildings,
and valuable stores, is surely tantamount to a confession
on the part of the victors, that they are unable to

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FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 323

hold, and to protect even for their own use, that which
they have often very dearly won.

The skilful Pelissier was of an energetic, daring
nature, not burdened, like his predecessor, with fears
about the sacrifices large strategical operations de-
manded ; and the bolder his plans, the more alacrity
his Army displayed, for all the soldiers of the Allies
were sick of the slower stages of the siege. Notwith-
standing, there was great diversity of opinion about the
advisability of the assault of Sevastopol without first
investing the place.

Brave and adventurous as the French were, most of
their Generals were averse to the scheme of immediately
storming the Mamelon, the White Works, and the
Quarries, on which Pelissier and Lord Raglan were
agreed. These experienced commanders were saga-
cious in premising that, as the Allies had retained
hitherto all the ground they had taken, if these works,
which commanded the Malakoff and the Redan, could
be wrested from the Russians, Sevastopol would not
long hold out, and the war would be ended.

The Emperor pressed the necessity of investing, but
the Emperor was in Paris — two thousand miles away.

Pelissier had determined to be Commander-in-Chief
in reality, not merely in name. With him lay the
military responsibility of the success, or failure, of the
French Army, and he would have no paltering with the
claims of royal prerogatives, for he knew how impotent
a theory often may be in the face of the unforeseen
local conditions which inspire prompt measures, and
rapid execution. Self-reliance (as well as knowledge
of the science of war) is the essential equipment of
every great General. If his authority, which he knew
should be commensurate with his responsibility, were
interfered with, Pelissier was capable of sweeping the
interference out of his path, even though it emanated
from an Emperor. For by some men the Emperor of
the French was regarded as a theorist only.

324 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

The hour of real emergency had arrived, when a
sound decision seemed to each Commander-in-Chief to
be of the most vital consequence ; and that not to act
upon his own convictions would be to betray the
national confidence represented by his responsibility.

P61issier boldly ignored his master's policy, and it
would have been well had the concerted efiforts of the
Allies been pressed home without change or wavering.

The third bombardment commenced on June 6th by
a simultaneous cannonade from five hundred and fifty
French and English guns. Sir Evelyn Wood tells that
the volume of sound was "grand beyond description."
On Todleben, the engineer, it made a different impres-
sion than that experienced by the young naval cadet,
for he recorded that the fire of the English was " mur-
derous, entailing havoc and ruin."

The cannonade continued with more or less vigour
till the loth instant, but it was on the 7 th that the
struggle between the belligerents was most fierce. As
the guns of the Mamelon could rake troops in the
Quarries, it was necessary that it should be taken first,
and the operations were carried out, as Kelson Stothert's
letters describe, on ■ a large scale. The English fire
was directed against the outworks of the Quarries,
situated between the Redan, which they covered, and
the British trenches ; that of the French was directed
against the Mamelon, and the White Works to the
east of the Careening Ravine. At the last-named
Works, Bosquet, with fine forethought and skill, per-
sisted in pressing forward supports, and outwitting the
enemy by sheer force of numbers.

The Quarries were taken almost without a struggle,
for their occupants retired to the Redan. The English
guns, being nearer than in April, proved more deadly,
but the terrible fire which the Allies, at all points, drew
upon themselves, was deadly also.

When the French had valorously taken the Mamelon,
and the Russians, driven from their outworks, had, at

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 325

length, to retire behind their main line of defence, their
defeat was rendered infinitely more galling, because of
their countless losses, and the knowledge that their
enemies were slowly, but surely, gaining in upon the
citadel that had been defended with so much sacrifice,
because the besieged had hitherto considered it in-
vulnerable.

TO HIS FATHER.

Off Sevastopol,

June 8th, 1855.

The day before yesterday a smart cannonade opened on the
fortifications of Sevastopol about half-past two in the after-
noon, and continued without intermission until ten o'clock last
night, when it almost entirely ceased. In the afternoon a
party from the ship went to visit our old friend in the French
fort, the Genoa battery, the one nearest to the sea, at that time
under a heavy cross fire of shot and shell from five different
batteries. We were very anxious to see the firing, and thought
it would be hard if we did not support our friends when in
trouble. With some anxiety and a good deal of scampering,
dodging, hiding and tricking, as shot after shot came bounding
along, covering everybody with stones and dust, the bastion
was gained. Our acquaintances greeted us with a shriek of
laughter, adding " c'est une comedie" to see the English officers
come "pleasuring" on such an occasion. The bomb shells
were falling in great numbers to the rear, creating much alarm
by their rush and noise, but doing really little injury. Only
five men were killed during the visit of the party, which lasted
more than half an hour, for one ran far more danger in enter-
ing or leaving the battery than in remaining there. However,
I must say (being a non-combatant) that the sensation was far
more pleasant in leaving than in remaining, with the whirr of
shot close at hand, and dead men covered with blood at the
next gun. Towards nightfall a sharp fire of musketry was
seen, and to-day we have heard that the important fort of the
Mamelon was carried with a loss of 2,000 to the French, and
a large number on our side also, as well as forty officers killed
and wounded. Report also says the Redan is taken. If so,
Sevastopol is ours in a week. I go to-morrow to make a long
journey to the camp, and will learn the truth of a rumour of

326 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

which you at home have been certain some hours. Everything
is going on well at Kertch, except the barbarous cruelty of
the Turks.

The weather is fearfully hot, thermometer 84° in the cabins.
We shall have it higher still. Cholera is very bad, but not so
bad as last year. I told you of the loss of my friend Chapman,
the surgeon, by that malady.

I have just had a letter from a general officer at the camp.
The whole affair was badly planned and worse executed ; the
general thinks " there will be a row." He blames the French.
My Blue-jackets behaved splendidly.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
Ofif Sevastopol,

June i2th, 1855.

We sent home a despatch to you last night to say that
Anapa, the last stronghold of the Russians to the south had
been hastily evacuated, and was held by the Circassians, but
that the Admiral had taken measures to prevent its re-occu-
pation by the enemy. Thus success has attended all our
efirorts there. We have also had success here, as the telegraph
will have told you long before this. The famous Mamelon
is now ours, having been carried in a gallant way by the
French, although, I regret to say, with a great loss on both
sides.

The day before yesterday I went to see John Adye, and
found that his brother Mortimer's career had for a time been
put a stop to. In the bombardment previous to the storming
of the Mamelon a shell exploded close to him, and he was
badly burnt. I got on one of John's horses and rode off to the
right to Mortimer's tent, where, after some trouble, I found
him. He is very much burnt, but his eyesight is not injured,
and no fever has set up. I have consulted our surgeons who
are used to this kind of thing, and they say that now it is
hardly likely he will suffer from fever, and that the loss of hair
and skin will be all. . . . He is in excellent spirits, sleeps
well, and eats well, as far as he can get anything, and is very
thankful that his sight will be preserved. I hope to have him
down here with me in a few days. The change will do him
good.

On the same occasion as a flag of truce was out for burying

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 327

the dead, I rode down to the Mamelon, the scene of the
fight. Corpses were thickly heaped together, and perhaps
more horribly mutilated than the victims at Alma. I think
more French were there than Russians. The former lost
upwards of 2,000 men killed and wounded. This flag of truce
gave me an opportunity of seeing much forbidden ground, and
the possession of a horse enabled me to view a great deal more
of the " terrain " than I had ever seen before. The Mamelon
is a fort of immense strength, and the magazine a perfect hill
of earth. Strange to say twenty-eight hours after the capture
of the place a drunken Russian was found there, with the
means of ignition in his possession ! ! ! A great many of the
Russian officers seem snobs, and I expect, like the French,
have been of late mainly supplied from the ranks, but one of
them told us not to stray too far among the stones and grass,
as the ground was covered with a destructive and explosive
weapon called " fugace." This is a box filled with shot,
musket balls and powder, and fitted with a fuse, which, being
trodden upon, explodes at once. Several did explode, but
none when I was there. I had not time to make a very
minute investigation, for the period of truce had nearly
expired, and the warning guns having been fired, the crowd of
pedestrians was retiring. The dead were not nearly buried,
and I suspect are still uncovered. I had just time to turn my
horse's head and gallop within the lines with a large troop of
horsemen when the firing recommenced. On our return a
large grey hare jumped from some bushes, and we had a hunt,
but she got away at last. What a queer life this is ? One day
a deadly fight, next day a truce, and people go out to see the
field of battle as they would go to a flower show in England.
The impressions of these awful scenes are barely imprinted on
our minds when they give place to the excitement of a hare
hunt, and then again one is softened and depressed by meeting
the solemn procession of a funeral party with a stretcher, borne
on men's shoulders, containing some object covered with a
blood-stained blanket. We rein in and take off' our hats as these
remains of once brave men pass towards their narrow home ;
the guards turn out, arms clash,, the procession passes on, and
the wave of other occupations closes in, and fills up the
interval. Perhaps it is well it is so. I do not think we could
bear the tension if we dwelt long and minutely upon all that
goes on around us. The quick change of thought and scene is
itself preservation.

When the Malakoff tower and the Redan are ours the

328 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

south side of Sevastopol will be gained. Before my letter
reaches you the telegraph will have told you of the attack or
failure of this part of our schemes. I am sick of the war.

« « * * «

P.S. — We hear the Malakoff is to be attempted to-night.
Have you been able to put my name down again on the books
of Worcester ? I can get my degree out here without going
home, I am told, so that I am doubly anxious to have it
arranged.

There is not much fear now of my getting shot, as I do not
know when I shall go to the trenches again, having seen all the
lines, both French and English, from beginning to end. If we
do go in again (as I suspect) to attack the forts, and anything
happens to me, Sue's children may have my Crimean medal,
which is now due.

Yesterday I walked up to the camp and went to see
Mortimer Adye. He appears much better, and expects to be
sent to Scutari very shortly. I was greatly shocked when
arriving at the sailors' camp to find an intimate friend of mine,
a surgeon, dying of cholera. I sat with him more than an
hour. He could not speak, but knew me well and would take
cissistance from no hand but mine. When I was obliged to
leave him I had a little hope, but he died about an hour after.
He was a fine fellow and has done his duty.

I see the Times correspondent dismisses my case summarily
enough. How carelessly these men get up evidence. I took
the trouble to write to him to tell him that he had made an
error in supposing no chaplain had been appointed ; that I was
appointed in the winter, and that the winter's toil destroyed
my health, etc., etc. This is all the notice he has taken of my
communication. I am glad, however, no more has been said.
" Least said soonest mended," and these men are not the
fellows to feel the " toil and moil " of our duties.

I met Eber the other day. He is very well indeed and
wishes me to visit him. The Fleet have returned from Kertch.
When are the books coming out? I wish you could get
me six more Chobhams, I have nothing else fit to wear.

The daily losses since the last bombardment were
very considerable ; the Allies had to continue sapping
closer and closer ; the troops in the trenches, from the
ceaseless shelling, suffered cruelly, while the industry in

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 329

the Sevastopol mortar batteries was indefatigable. The
occupation of the Mamelon cost the French, incredibly,
it was said 100 per day.

At length an assault was determined upon ; the ships
of the line were commanded to make a " demonstration "
in order to engage some of the artillerymen in defend-
ing seaward batteries, who would otherwise be occupied
augmenting the number of those employed in the land
batteries facing the Allies. It was supposed at this time
there were only from 45,000 to 50,000 in the garrison
of Sevastopol.* Disease was rife there and supplies
had begun to fail ; to harass at different points was one
of the most necessary tactics.

A furious bombardment was continued all day on the
17th of June. During the night the assaulting
columns were moved into the trenches. The plan
of attack arranged between Lord Raglan and P61issier
for the early morning of the i8th, was to bombard
heavily for three hours ; to destroy the earthworks
which the Russians never failed to repair during the
night ; to disable the guns by which they were armed ;
and to clear the parapets of troops before commencing
the assault.

At the last moment when he had no choice but to
acquiesce, Lord Raglan received a despatch from
Pdlissier intimating an alteration in the arrangements,
which could not but result in confusion. The French
Commander-in-Chief had decided to commence the
assault with no preliminary cannonade, as he feared
moving such large bodies of troops after dawn might
be discerned, and the enemy would not be taken by the
surprise he hoped to effect, which surprise would be a
surer guarantee for the success of the assault.

All was ready before daybreak, but General Mayran,
who was in command of one of the French assaulting
Divisions, anticipated the signal for marching ; his
troops became confused, and, in the terrible fire they

• " Letters from Headquarters," page 317.

330 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

had drawn upon themselves, he was mortally wounded.
The other two French Generals, Brunet and d'Auter-
marre, with their Divisions, each of about six thousand
troops, did not simultaneously go forward ; and, not-
withstanding their resolute attempts to storm those
Russian defences assigned to them, they did not
accomplish the purpose of their Commanders-in-Chief.
The appalling fire, which everywhere met them, lite-
rally mowed them down, and Brunet was killed in
his gallant attempt to reach the Little Redan. Not-
withstanding the numbers of both English and French
supports in reserve, in the haphazard which reigned
throughout this desperate assault, some were not
used, and others got into confusion with regiments
already engaged.

It had been agreed that the English were not to
begin operations till the French possessed the Mala-
koff, as its guns commanded the Redan which they
were to attempt, for, unless the Malakoff was silenced,
the Redan could not possibly be taken.

Lord Raglan, however, from his position could see
how the French were being decimated, and he sought
to obtain a diversion for them' by ordering the assault
of his force to commence, but a terrible fire of grape
and musketry poured also upon them from every
side. The stormers were eager and daring ; soldiers
and sailors alike dauntlessly flung themselves forward.
Climbing over the parapet, their formation was de-
stroyed, and a scattering fire met first the Rifles, then
part of the 33rd Regiment led by Colonel Johnstone,
who was very soon severely wounded. Colonel Yea,
seeing the troops wavering, rallied them by putting
himself at their head, and led the way to the Redan.
" He was some yards in advance of his column," writes
one who recognised the bravery of this gallant officer,
" when a charge of grape shot struck him in the
body and the head, and he fell to the ground, pointing
with his sword the direction the troops were to take."

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 331

Not a bad end for the only son of Sir William Walter
Yea ; not a bad end either for the last of a long
line whose redoubtable ancestor was a certain Nicholas
de la Ya, a Devonshire knight, in the reign of Henry
III. How he was honoured and respected during the
campaign is recorded in a letter written by General
Codrington to his sister.*

Colonel Shadforth, leading the storming party, was
also killed, and Sir John Campbell was mortally struck
while endeavouring to take his place. The list of slain
and wounded on this memorable morning is too long to
recount. Their names are engraven on the pages of
their country's history, and some of them on unpreten-
tious headstones erected near where they so valiantly
fought, and nobly died.

The assault having failed, the attack was abandoned.
The programme had included lodgment for the Allies
both in the Malakofif and the Redan, but stubborn
resistance defeated their splendid valour. The French
did get a footing in the former, but were driven out
with terrible loss ; they also penetrated into the Kara-
belnaia suburb, but so sore was their need of supports
there that the troops became dispirited. The Russian
artillery had played the usual game common to artillery.
Its fire had broken up the advancing ranks ; half measures
are not its practice ; too insatiable for mere wounds, it
deals out annihilation, save when it scatters apart brain
and limbs, so that after it is stilled, a man looks in vain
for the body of his friend, and is fortunate if he is able
to recognise any of his remains.

The Naval Brigade lost very heavily, their deter-
mined courage undiminished by the knowledge that
they were pressing forward into hopeless straits. The
Blue-jackets were keen to " beat the Russians " ; the
broader issues — preservation of Turkish integrity ;
maintenance of British prestige ; the safeguarding of
his country's honour — did not directly concern Jack's

• At the end of this chapter.

332 FROM THE FLEET /iV THE FIFTIES.

immediate point of view ; what did, however, concern
him very greatly in this terrible failure, was the loss of
so many of his " chums," and the wounding of his hero,
Captain Peel — and woe be to the enemy in the next
encounter ! Not that he could have done better in the
struggle of the day. Without boasting. Jack knew he
had done his loyal best, as is his custom on despe-
rate occasions, the " dumb British valour '' overcoming
siege-weariness, and that lack of sleep about which, in
truce time, a Russian officer made a laughing joke. A
distinguished General has given a very vivid account
of the work of the Naval Brigade on June i8th, 1855,
but, as at the time he belonged to that arm of the
Service, and did his own valorous part in this assault, in
which he was wounded, he has not been too lavish in
his expressions of praise. Possibly he refrained out
of respect to the men, who hate to be talked about
"for having done their duty," misliking it only one
degree less than being talked about for having left
their duty undone.

Such was the calibre of the Naval Brigade, officers
and men — steadfast, persistent, and unconquerably
brave.

And it was not his own fault that the beardless
Hotspur, Midshipman Evelyn Wood, did not die in
his boots that day, for care of the life that has since
served his country so well, was assuredly not the para-
mount impulse that impelled him to dare the impossible,
as, all round him, others, twice his age, were doing to
the death they were facing so zealously. The ladder
parties had an evil time ; the open in front of the ad-
vanced trench was fatal ground ; he himself has vividly
told of some tragic experiences during the storming —
men remember to the end impressions made on such a
day — God grant they forget them in the Hereafter !
A shot in the arm felled him, and, for a time, he lay
insensible. No more exploits for you at present
Midshipman Wood ; no more following of your un-

MIDSHIPMAN EVELYN WOOD

FROM A PAINTING IN 1 854.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 333

flinching leader, Peel, through murderous showers of
grape, over dead-bestrewed ramparts. He, too, is
disabled, and deep the grumbling against "bad luck"
in the sailors' camp to-night ; but the world has yet
more to hear of you both, and, though the Naval
Brigade loses your services now, you have learnt with
the Blue-jackets much that shall stand you in good stead
later ; so, for a while — softly !

The death rolls and the repulse were poignant griefs
to the Commanders of the Allied Armies, and " it was a
sad sight indeed to see the poor, broken, jaded columns
winding their weary way up the valleys,' * wrote Lord
George Paget, who discerned how keen a blow this
failure was to his own much-beloved chief, and how
mortifying also it was for Lord Raglan to know that
the suffering, and horrible waste of life, had all been
in vain.

The price of a great military disaster is not always
paid in blood and treasure : the humiliation of defeat is
a veritable lash of scorpions to every proud spirit.
Irresponsible opinion, too, invariably charges failure
with incompetence ; and, at critical moments, when
judgment should be suspended, or reservedly calm,
hard-won reputations are blown away as lightly as
vagrant thistledown is scattered to the winds.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
Off Sevastopol,

June 19th, 1855.
We have been in a state of great anxiety for several days
past, as rumour pointed out each successive morning as the
time when the final assault was to be made. Yesterday, the
anniversary of Waterloo, the Fleet got under weigh, cleared
for action, and cruised about off the forts waiting for the pre-
concerted signal from Lord Raglan to go in and attack in
conjunction with the Army. The signal was never made, and

* " The Light Cavalry Brigade in the Crimea," page 102.

334 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

at night news arrived that we had failed in our attack on the
MalakofF tower, but had succeeded in capturing the Redan
fort with great loss to ourselves, many men and four generals
having been killed. We still, I believe, hold the Redan. At
midnight last night a terrible fire of musketry took place, the
result of which we have not heard. You may imagine the
state of anxiety we are all in. No news has arrived from
camp, except that one of our Blue-jackets, on a visit to the
trenches, had his head blown off there. Our artillery fire,
having silenced the enemy's batteries immediately opposite
our parallels, we hoped for a sure victory. I do not doubt
that we shall yet succeed, but our disappointment is not the
less at present. Every night some of the steamers have gone
into the forts and blazed away at them, the Russians returning
the fire with great spirit and tremendous noise. A few
casualities only have occurred, the most serious of which has
been a wound sustained by Captain Lyons (the son of the
Admiral), who has lost the calf of his leg and has gone to
hospital.

Nothing could exceed the grandeur of these night attacks.
The black darkness is suddenly illumined with sheets of flame,
the roar of artillery echoes across the sea and amongst the
mountains, like a dozen thunderstorms ; shells sparkle, and
hiss, and explode, while rockets roar as if the devils were
making holiday. Little harm is done as far as ships are con-
cerned ; they are constantly shifting their position, and are,
consequently, difficult to hit. Not so with the forts ; every
shot must tell upon them. No wonder the Russian gunners
lose so many lives. Lord Raglan is anxious the ships should
not go in, if it can be helped ; our fire would destroy as many
of our own people as of the Russians. If news arrives before
post time, I will tell you. Kindest love to all.

P.S. — We have just had authentic news of the affairs of
yesterday and last night. The attacks on all the important
positions of the Redan, and Tour de Malakoff, failed entirely,
owing to the French storming party having mistaken the
signal, in consequence of which part of them advanced to the
attack before the time. Lord Raglan, seeing this, at once
ordered our men to support the French, instead of waiting the
issue of the first charge of our Allies, as had been arranged.
Such a murderous discharge of grape fell upon the advancing
parties, that, after a gallant resistance, they were obliged to
fall back (leaving three regiments on the spot who could

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 335

neither advance nor retire), but sheltered themselves in the
trench. The French lost 5,000 men, two generals killed and
seven wounded. General Campbell has been killed on our
side, and gallant Colonel Yea, of the 7th Fusiliers. Forty
officers killed and wounded, besides 1,500 rank and file killed,
wounded and missing.

The affair was only a feigned attack on the part of the
French to extricate the regiments I have spoken of, who were
hemmed in. The loss was, however, nine hundred men to our
Ally.

The Naval Brigade, as usual, suffered severely, having pre-
ceded the attacks with scaling ladders. Captain Peel has
been wounded, and young Wood also. We have lost a valued
messmate, and several of our people killed. It is not half as
bad as the ten attempts on St. Sebastian in the last war. I
hope in a day or two another attack will be made.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Off Sevastopol,

June 26th, 1855.

You will have heard by this time of the disastrous event of
the attack upon the Malakoff tower and its failure. I sent to
Carry the Journal de Constantinople, which contains a truly
French account of a pitiable affair. I put two Queen's heads
on the paper ; perhaps you will let me know if it arrives
safely, and for that.

Captain Lyons, of the Miranda, the second and favourite
son of the Admiral, is dead ; he went in with his ship to attack
the forts a few nights ago, and the splinter of a shell carried
away the calf of his leg. Having been in ill health for some
time previously, the shock was too great for him ; mortification
set in ; amputation was unavailing, and he died at Therapia
Hospital on Saturday morning.

A painful feeling has been experienced at the result of a
court martial on one of our naval surgeons on shore. The
surgeon neglected to turn out at once to see a sick man (as is
often the custom at home, much more, of course, with our
overworked doctors in the camp) ; the man died, and the
surgeon is mulcted of his pay, dismissed the service, and
imprisoned for two years. All say the sentence is too severe ;
but a victim was wanted, and, when found, received no mercy
at the hands of a board of fussy old post captains, who con-

336 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

sider all but their own class proper game for every kind of
contumely and injustice. I should say that no medical care
could have saved the man in question, as he died of a sudden
attack of heart complaint. No doubt the surgeon was ex-
ceedingly culpable, but old gentlemen who have never slept
out of their beds for many years, and have not known what it
is to miss their daily bottle of port, cannot well know what a
surgeon is likely to do in camp, when worn out with constant
labour by day, and whose nights are constantly broken into,
frequently, I well know, by people who have all sorts of
imaginary illnesses.

FROM GENERAL CODRINGTON TO COLONEL YEA'S SISTERS.

Before Sebastopol,

June 19th, 1855.

r hear that my friend, my valued and gallant friend, who
yesterday gave up his life to duty, has sisters ; and I presume
to write to them in the hope that the assurance of the
universal feeling prevalent in the Army of the gallantry of
their excellent brother may somewhat soften their misery at
his lois. But it is not only of the gallant performance of his
duty yesterday that I wish to speak ; on every occasion of
fight — at Alma — at Inkerman — in the daily and nightly, but
not less dangerous fights of the Trenches — the name of
Colonel Yea of the /th^ Fusiliers has been made most
prominent ; and now in this last and desperate attack upon
the Redan of Sebastopol he was named by high authority to
the Command of the Brigade in which he has been so much
with me, and was named as the assaulting Column of the
Light Division. To no more gallant soldier could this be
entrusted ; none could show a greater devotion in preparing
all the details, and the result has well proved how determined
he was by personal efforts and experience to brave everything
for success. Alas ! he was killed amidst a storm of grape at
the abattis of the Redan, having gone up to it with gallant
companions, of whom few indeed returned unscathed.

But it has not only been in battle that he has shown his
excellent qualities ; throughout the whole of this terrible
winter — terrible from want of means — his efforts were never
failing, by public means, by private efforts, to obtain relief for
the sound men as well as the sick men of his regiment, and
he must have had the gratification of feeling that many of his
Regiment were indebted to his unceasing exertions for their

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FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 337

life and comparative health. Though an acquaintance only of
this Campaign in the Crimea, it became a friendship from the
soldierlike assistance he has ever given, and the devotion he
showed to every duty with which he was entrusted; and you may
feel sure that in all the terrible losses by fight, or by disease, of
this War, the grave will close over no more brave, energetic,
and devoted soldier, than your good Brother.

Yours sincerely,

Wm. Codrington.

338

CHAPTER XXVIII.

Notwithstanding the terrible number of their own
troops slaioi at the assault, and the increasing ravages
of disease among their wounded, iat the end of June
the Russians might well have considered that even
comparatively the fortunes of the British Army were
at a low ebb.

Another calamity was imminent. Its Commander-
in-Chief lay dying.

On his return to Headquarters on the i8th, baffled,
and depressed in spirit, Lord Raglan had found news
awaiting him of the death of his beloved sister.
Added to the strain of this personal grief, was the
inevitable conviction that the late event, upon which
very much had been hazarded by the Allied Generals,
had ended so disastrously, mistakes must have been
committed, and it was no slight mortification to him
that his Ally, P61issier, would not be eager to blame
himself for the primary blunder.

Lord Raglan's practice had never ignored the
necessity of risking the safety of his forces for adequate
results, but, like all prudent commanders, he had in-
variably recognized the duty of protecting his regiments
from the possibility of absolute annihilation. The
losses in every grade of the Army, doubtless coupled
with the keen disappointment of failure, preyed upon
his mind, and it was remarked, before his brief illness,
that he had aged considerably in appearance since the
assault.

Cholera and camp fever were still claiming their

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 339

victims, and neither harbour nor Headquarters had
immunity. The death from the former disease, of
General Estcourt, Adjutant-General of the Army (on
the 25th), proved another great blow to the already
overburdened mind of the Commander-in-Chief.

Lord Raglan was seized with dysentery ; although at
first the doctors did not think very seriously of the
attack, their patient had no rallying power, and
gradually sank, "the victim of England's unreadiness
for war." * On the 28th, anniversary of the Coronation
of the Sovereign he had served so well, when his spirit
passed away, at his bedside were his friends Lord and
Lady George Paget, General Simpson, and some
members of his staff: Sir George Brown had that
morning sailed for England.

The much-deplored tidings cast a great gloom over
the Allied Arrhies, in which was mingled, to those who
knew what Lord Raglan's difficulties had been, not a
little dread that British influence at the seat of war
would not be so forceful now he was gone who had
preserved its weight and dignity in the councils, even
when a skeleton army, during the winter, had been all
the material with which he had been able to back his
words. Pdlissier's regret for the loss of the colleague
for whom he had always shewn profound respect, was
deep and touching, and his general order to the
French Army was a truly sympathetic and admiring
tribute, f

Lord Raglan's unique character, his sagacity, self-
restraint, and his noble, unostentatious life, had com-
pelled the esteem of even those from whose opinions
he had disagreed, and " always calm, dispassionate, con-
sistent, cheerful," was the eulogium of the gallant
Admiral, J whose relations with him had been as close
and friendly as official life would permit.

* " The Crimea in 1854 and 1894," page 335 — General Sir Evelyn Wood,
t See Appendix V.
} Sir Edmund Lyons.

340 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

But, during the whole of the campaign, Lord Raglan
had been fettered by the unavoidable conditions of
Allied action. Had his command in the Crimea been
absolutely independent, not only of our Ally, but also
of the too definite instructions of his own Government,
although it is impossible to conjecture in what the
sequence of operations would have differed, it is per-
missible to believe that posterity would have had a
more accurate basis for judgment upon him as a great
military commander.

All those most familiar with his personal character
recognized that duty — supreme, tireless, self-denying,
and ideal — was the impulse of all his doings. The
man " who could not tell a lie to save his life," * never
betrayed either friend or foe, and the conscience of a
nation might have safely been given into his keeping,
for, maligned, misjudged, and misunderstood by his
fellow-countrymen, he refrained from vindicating him-
self, as he could well have done, because his defence
would have jeopardized the reputation of the Govern-
ment he was loyally pledged to serve. But now the
true heart was cured of its ache, and beyond all hurt
from busybodies.

The honours paid to his obsequies by the four Allied
Armies, testified to the universal respect which he had
inspired. During the sad hours, while the cortege was
wending its way from Headquarters to Kazatch Bay, a
distance of between five and six miles, not a gun was
fired from the garrison of Sevastopol : —

" Though in this city he
Hath widow'd and unchilded many a one,
Which to this hour bewail the injury.
Yet he shall have a noble memory."

There was no one left behind so qualified by early
training, and later diplomatic experience, for maintain-
ing amicably the British military influence in the

* This was said of him by the Duke of Wellington.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 341

councils as hitherto. Upon General Simpson the chief
command now devolved, but we must turn to Kelson
Stothert's letters for some account of local impressions
at this critical period.

TO HIS SISTER.

Off Sevastopol,

June 29th, 1855.

Poor Raglan died last night as you will have heard by this
time (12 o'clock). The cause of his lamented and unexpected
decease has not transpired to us, although doubtless the
telegraph has already carried it to England. His loss will be
felt very severely, for he was so greatly valuable in keeping us
in amicable relations with the French ; no slight task I can
assure you.

Of his military talents I am not competent to speak, but
people say he was vastly superior to P^lissier, who is a mere
sabreur, excellent in leading a charge, but nothing as a
General.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Off Sevastopol,

June 30th, 1855.

I have been suffering, but have nearly recovered. The
exhaustion produced is great. I have not been able to walk
out for nearly a fortnight, so that I cannot say how Mortimer
Adye is, but I expect he has gone to Scutari.

You will have heard by this time of the lamentable death
of Lord Raglan, just at the time when his peculiar usefulness
had become so apparent, when the prejudices we had against
him had been removed by the late Parliamentary explanations ;
and when all his trials were about to be crowned, as we
believed, by victorious success. Who is to replace him I do
not know. Sir George Brown is knocked up, and I suppose
Sir C. Campbell will be the man.

We have yet to take the Malakoff and Redan, but from
what we see of the enormous works the Russians are even now
daily erecting on these points, there is little hope of a bloodless
victory. The Russians are splendid fellows, quite as good as

342 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

in 1812, when they scattered the feathers of the eagles of
f ranee. Was it not at Smolensko that 7,cxx5 Russian recruits
resisted 40 charges of 18,000 French cavalry without being
broken ? I think it was there. The same firm endurance and
barbaric fanaticism still actuate the legions of the Tsar.
However, many of his veteran troops have been destroyed, for
the Imperial Guard nearly perished at Alma and Inkerman,
where the decorations of the dead showed that thousands of
them had fought in the Hungarian war. Eber hcis several
trophies he cut off the coats of Russian officers.

I hope to see George out here soon. If he comes I wish you
could send me " Napier's Peninsular War." It is a book I have
long wished to possess, and should read it now with particular
interest and some knowledge.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Off Sevastopol,

July 3rd, 1855.

Lord Raglan's body leaves the Crimea to-day for England.
There will be a grand military procession for the purpose of
accompanying the funeral cortege to the place of embarkation
at Kazatch ; nearly the whole of the French and English Army
will be present. We are to land several hundred marines and
Blue-jackets to form a guard of honour, and all the captains
of the Fleet will take part in conveying the remains on board
the Caradoc, the ship selected. The body is preserved in
m6m,* and enclosed in lead. A eulogistic and General Order
has been published by the French naval and military
authorities, the former including in their expressions of
condolence the name of Captain Lyons, the son of the
Admiral, whom you recollect was killed, or rather died of
his wounds, after the night attack on Sevastopol. The mail
that arrived after his death brought word that the Queen had
made him a C.B.

General Simpson takes the command pro tempore, and we
hear that Sir Harry Smith is coming out. I hope not I
have just been reading the speeches of Layard and Gladstone
on the question of administrative reform. Layard's speech is
warm in tone, but vague and illusory, Gladstone's is candid,
beautifully expressed, and his reasoning exquisitely balanced.

* Mom — a Persian word — is the wax used in the East for embalming.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 343

I quite agree with him that the Administrative Reform
Association is hardly worth serious attention. Lord
Aberdeen's Government it appears, at the instance of
Gladstone, has been long engaged in making sensible
reforms. If the Association mean nothing, they ought to
say nothing. If they mean anything they ought to say what
they mean. Nothing at all is being done here. The Admiral
is ill of grief, and so worn out with anxiety that he keepsTiis
bed. I am glad to find that my friend Mr. McKillop is made
a Commander for his frolic in the Sea of Azov.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Off Sevastopol,

July 8th, 1855.

Lord Raglan's remains left here by the Caradoc for
England a few days since. I went on shore to see the coffin
placed in a boat for the ship. On the road from Head-
quarters to Kazatch (five miles) French troops of the line were
drawn up as a Guard of Honour, and 20 eagles were displayed
at various points.

The coffin was escorted by about seven regiments of
cavalry and horse artillery, no other troops being at that time
available, in consequence of a threatened attack of the
Russians. All the generals attended. P^lissier was there
with his aides-de-camp, and fluttering guidon, ostrich feather-
adorned hat, and all complete. Canrobert, in diminished
splendour, rode alone, the " Star of the Bath " glittering on his
breast. Omar Pasha, attended by his brilliant but barbarian
followers, rode close after the corpse, the most soldierlike
looking man of all the throng, except General Delia Marmora,
the Sardinian. The Cuirassiers of the Guard mustered in
great force, officered by some of the fattest individuals I ever
saw. I could not help noting the contrast between our men
and the French. The latter were smaller, and not such good
riders as the English cavalry. I was filled with pride at the
superior appearance of our own regiments, sitting their
splendid horses as if they were part of them, cold and im-
passive as their own swords (which were lowered with soldier-
like courtesy as each regiment passed an " Eagle "), looking as
if nothing could check their advance. I am sure nothing
could resist a charge of English cavalry, but they are too cold
and too heavy to pursue. The French rode like bags of hay,

344 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

bumping about with their toes at an acute angle to the
horse's belly, and, as they passed their colours, they gave an
extra bump and waved their swords theatrically as much
as to say —

" Fi, Fo, Fum !

I smell the blood of a Muscovy man,
Whether he's dead or whether he's lively,
I'll pound his flesh to make me Bouilli."

The generals on both sides, with the exception of those I
have named, are, as far as appearance goes, about on a par —
old men greatly the worse for wear.

I saw John Adye. Mortimer is gone to Scutari for a month,
and is getting on extremely well. What the effect of Lord
Raglan's death will be upon the fortunes of the Adyes I do
not know.

Large reinforcements have arrived to the Russians under
the command of General Luders. He vows to retake the
Mamelon. I am sick of the war, of iighting for wretched,
effete barbarians like the Turks, who, as the late Nicholas
said, are about to die ; some of us are inclined to think the
sooner the better. I should almost like to be able to give
them the final coup myself.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

July loth, 1855.
Colonel Bowler of North Aston has lost his eldest son
who was in the loth Hussars, just come from India to this
place. He was with the advanced forces across the Tchemaya,
where cholera was, and I believe still is, very rife ; and early fell
a victim. I was enquiring about him the day after he died,
and was greatly shocked to hear he was gone, leaving a wife
at his father's, and, I presume, children. I suppose few
families at home of any distinction are not in mourning. The
gentlemen of England have poured out their blood like water
in this disastrous war ; it is vain that the Layards and the
Lindsays, followed by their crew of pepper-dust makers, wine
and spirit manufacturers, tea adulterators, chicory pro-coffee
sellers, poison vendors, thieving bankers, dishonest merchants,
tyrant manufacturers, et hoc genus omne, who at this time
form so large a portion of the middle classes of England, and

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 345

to the lasting disgrace of our English name, are so boastful, so
ambitious, and so jealous, it is vain that they should say to
other men " Stand by. I am holier than thou ! " Venality is
shewn by the bishops, nepotism by the nobles ; but, with all
their defects, self-sacrificing devotion to their country's good,
is exhibited not by the Administrative Reform Association,
but by the Newcastles, the Aberdeens, the Herberts and many
other members of the much-abused aristocracy. Have you
read Dr. Hassall's report on the adulteration of food ? It will
be a " caution," as well as a mortification to those who are
accustomed to boast of the honesty, the intelligence, and the
morality of the middle classes of England. Foreigners say we
are the most dishonest rogues in the whole world.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

July loth, 1855.

I direct this letter to Sandford, thinking you may be there.
Will you forward the enclosed to Jenner ? I hope you enjoyed
your trip to Frome. How very sad for his wife and family is
poor Spring's death. The eldest son of Colonel Bowler of
North Aston is dead of cholera. This terrible complaint
attacks all newcomers. I shall not trouble myself to enquire for

's son ; my acquaintance is already so numerous that I

am quite unable to seek for any more. I have no opportunity
of doing so. It is too far to walk to the camp in this terrible
weather. The fashionable ride is to the valley of the Tcher-
naya, where the cavalry are, and where Captain Bowler died
and is buried. This is far out of reach, being ten or twelve
miles away, a distance impossible for pedestrians at this
season, especially as one mile out implies another mile back.
I am told it is a beautiful spot, and I hope to be able to get
twenty-four hours leave to go and see it. I am speaking as if
I had never been there. My visit was in the winter.

There is a heavy fire going on from all the batteries at this
moment, but what it means I cannot say ; probably we are
trying to reduce a few of the new levies General Luders
has brought to the relief of the place.

I should like to be able to see Lilly and Jenner and their
piccaninnies once more. I am so tired of this endless scene of
ruined walls and towers ; shaken and scattered batteries ;
broken guns and shot ; trenches hot and miserable, reticulating
the face of the country ; camps foul and filthy ; swearing

346 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

soldiers, drunken sailors, thieving merchant captains, lying
newspaper reporters, putrid bullocks, dying horses, and
burning heat ; sullen guns breaking upon the ear with horrid
discord ; dying men, dead men's bones and all uncleanness. It
is become quite a passion with me to see, if only for an hour or
two, some civilized place, where I may look once more upon a
man without a musket, a woman not drunk, a tree with leaves
on it, a church without shot holes in its roof, and Icist, but not
least, a peaceful, homely flower garden.

Will you give my remembrances to all our friends in
Oxfordshire ? If you see Clifton tell him from me to give my
kind regards to the Bowlers and my sincere condolences in
their loss, and to say if I can be of any service in seeing
a monument erected, I hope they will command me.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Off Sevastopol,

July 13th, 1855.

I wrote to Hannay, the Bursar of Worcester, asking him to
take steps to replace my name on the college books, and
referring him to you. It will be a great advantage to me now,
and as things are made so cheap in the way of fees it will be
no great hardship. My difficulty is the £20 caution money.
I have not that sum in the whole world, notwithstanding
a good deal of economy. I send home quarterly to my agent
what is paid away for me, and the remainder is barely enough
to meet my expenses here.

There is a very heavy firing going on in the direction of the
Mamelon, but I do not suppose any intelligence will reach
us in time for the post.

I am suffering a good deal to-night from a return of the old
complaint, and can hardly sit up to write. If I do not add
anything more to-morrow you will excuse me this time. It is
terribly hot. I was told the thermometer was 112° on shore.
It has been 90° all day on board, but a thunder storm has
cleared the air.

I suppose my Mother is by this time at Sandford. I wrote to
her there last mail. Haymaking must be over at home ; fruit
is ripe here. I ate some pears before breakfast to-day, and this
of course is the cause of my illness. What a climate it is.

I see P(flissier implies some degree of blame to Lord Raglan
for the failure of the late attack on the i8th. I heard, how-

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 347

ever, on the best authority, that the French General altered his
plans at the last moment. All the world knows what the
result must be in " la grande guerre " when the destination of
the operations of large bodies of men, in such a terrain, is
changed so suddenly. I suppose Government will not be able
to mention this.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Off Sevastopol,
July 17th, 1855.

I suppose you have been too busy to write to me this mail.
I have just returned from a short visit to the shore, where I
was detained last night by the weather, and have only time to
scribble a few lines to you before the post goes. There is no
news at all here, the bombardment having been put off for five
weeks.

I see the Times has a laudatory article on Lord Raglan, one
in its old manner of writing, not in the flippant, absurd style
that has lately disfigured its pages. I do not know whether I
ever told you of my only interview with the late Commander-
in-Chief It was when I first went to the camp on a visit, and
on returning to the Agamemnon I was requested to call at
Headquarters at Balaklava, and deliver some letters there that
had been sent to us by mistake. I entered the court of the
house, and found nobody but an old officer in a blue coat
talking to a young one. I mentioned my message, and
enquired to whom I should give the letters. " Oh ! " said the
elder of the two, " I will take them." I handed the packet to
him, and pointed out their various addresses, expressed my
thanks, bowed, and was going away, when the sight of an
empty sleeve, and the younger officer speaking to " my Lord,"
made known to me whom I was addressing. I did not
apologise, since Lord Raglan saw that I had mistaken him for
some subordinate, as indeed I had. Many a man would have
said " What the devil do you mean. Sir ? " but the fine old
warrior, true to the instinct of his courtly race, was very
pleasant with me and took my mistake as a matter of course.

348 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

TO HIS BROTHER.

Off Sevastopol,

July 2ist, 1855.

Caroline tells me you have a ship you are about to launch,
so that I suppose you will not be coming out here just yet.
I have been looking forward to your visit all this month, but
am glad of the cause which keeps you at home.

We are having a complete change of messmates. Our
doctor is going as staff surgeon to Malta. Our purser is
about to retire on half pay. The captain is now senior man
on the list ; and, with Admirals Dumassey and Parry at the
point of death, he is not likely to be many weeks longer a
captain. I only hope that when he attains to his Flag the ship
will be ordered home ; but that I hardly think probable.

I am now anxious about qualifying for the naval instructor-
ship, for which I must live at least five or six months abroad
so as to pick up a modern language as well as a quantum
sufficit of mathematics. I am almost afraid it is impossible ;
but if I get a good ship, it is hard if I cannot put by .£^150 a
year, besides allowing myself a decent margin for expenses. I
am working up, but quite see that at my time of life a good
master is essential, so totally have I forgotten all those little
matters one so easily learns at school. I should now like to
serve on five years more for my pension of five shillings a
day. A little addition of this sort to one's income is not to
be despised, especially if I should marry.

We are not expecting to do anything for a long time to
come. The General has telegraphed home for more guns. All
ours are now terribly disabled from long service. W^e are
also advancing our batteries, but the men will hardly work
at any price. A soldier is the laziest mortal on the face of the
earth.

TO HIS BROTHER.

Off Sevastopol,

July 28th, 1855.

I am sorry you have not been able to square yards for me,

but I should have been exceedingly vexed if you had put

yourself to any inconvenience. Did you write to the Oxford

people ? If you can pay in an odd note now and then it will

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 349

greatly accommodate me. Should I manage, by hook or by
crook, to study for a few months in Paris, I could, I am sure,
pass the examination for the Instructorship, which will be a
very valuable appointment for me. I have but two more
commissions to serve, and then I am entitled to five shillings
a day for life.

What fine doings you had at the launch of the A raxes!

My old captain is made Admiral, and I shall be very glad
to part, for he is the saddest fidget I ever met. Still, he is a
gentlemanly, excellent old man in his way. John Adye has
been made a C.B. I wonder when the Crimean medals are
coming out for us smaller folks. There is a talk of the bom-
bardment being resumed in another week ; but I do not
believe it myself, for I happen to know our guns are all in a
very bad state, most of them being completely worn out.

The weather is gloriously hot, night and day one is kept in
a perpetual state of perspiration. I am knocking up fast
from the climate. We are four miles from shore, and it is
too hot to walk in the day, and too far for boats to go
ashore at night, so we get no exercise and suffer eternal
thirst, with nothing but water filled with clay, chalk, and
nitrous mixtures to drink, or else strong wines which are
worse than " Pison." I should like to have a good swim in a
tank of Bass's ale.

It was not only the Allies who had lost, by disease,
death, and wounds, the invaluable services of their
best and bravest ; the Russians, too, had gaps that
could be but indifferently filled up.

General de Todleben had been slightly wounded on
the 1 8th by a shot through the leg, and a few days
after was completely disabled. It was owing to the
skill and energy of this one man that the determined
enemies of his country had been kept so long at bay
outside the citadel. He had conducted the defences
of Sevastopol in so masterly a manner, and by methods
so original had grappled with such terrible emergen-
cies, that, on the cramped, broken, crowded space to
the south of his parapets the camps of the Allies had
had to remain, month after month, while disease was
bred of foul, polluted earth, and the troops, over and

3SO FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

over again, were compelled to encounter the revolting
effects of the wholesale slaughter the prolonged
struggle entailed. And it was consequent upon the
unparalleled devices for mighty resistance of this
resourceful genius that the siege of Sevastopol
developed into one of the most important offensive
operations history has recorded.

In the Roadstead the Russian ships were now being
covered with clay, and their sides strengthened with
gabions. Their fire, unfortunately, often reached our
advanced working parties, and constantly harassed
them. There were frequent reports that the enemy's
ships were being worsted at sea, but the Twelve
Apostles, frequently called the triumph of naval archi-
tecture, was, at this time, still maintaining its
integrity.

On the loth of July, Nakimoff, of Sinope fame, the
fourth Russian Admiral killed in defending the fortress,
was mortally wounded. Verily, the Tsar was served
loyally and well ; but, remembering the bravery and
fate of the little, defenceless Turkish Squadron, the
tidings were doubtless received by the Allies with com-
posure ; especially by the troops in Omar Pasha's camp.

The siege dragged its slow course for several weeks.

Trenches were now extended, and batteries armed
more heavily. In July the French and British were
gradually sapping nearer and nearer to their goal ;
but more guns were wanted, for many of those in the
batteries were worn with incessant use, and needed
replacing before another great bombardment.

Sapping towards the Malakoff was steadily persisted
in by the French ; it was a task for Titans, and brave
Titans to boot. Their daily losses at this time were
very serious, for incessant Russian musketry fire was
kept up whenever a sortie from trench or battery was
made. Proximity aided the Allies also to discern the
movements of the enemy, and enabled them to pursue
the same treatment. All the troops on the advanced

FROM THE FLEET IN TJETE FIFTIES. 351

works of both sides were, at certain hours, targets ;
but even that trial they appeared to encounter with a
splendid zest. The labour had to be done, the
French in particular were certainly now taking the
leading part, and their spirit seemed to be rising to the
difficulty and the danger, as is the way with people
who, au fffnd, are truly and inherently brave.

The men, who have to bear the brunt of a
siege, may be ennobled by the sacrifices they have to
make ; but the results of the inevitable discipline of
such an experience are various. To the simple mind
it appears a weird method of bracing the moral
faculties, to subject them to a struggle for life in a
suffering camp, where the latent selfishness of every
man's nature is sorely tempted. But, though they had
become all too familiar with degrading sights of havoc
and destruction, loathsome disease, and death in its
most repulsive forms, and with the pestilential filth
actual warfare always entails, the troops of the Allies
were still doggedly brave and determined.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

August 14th, 1855.

I have a minute or two to spare before the post goes, and so
I send you these few lines.

There is a court-martial going on on board the Flag-ship, on
the commanding officer of the Jasper gunboat, which ran
aground in the Sea of Azof, and was shamefully given up to
the Cossacks, who made themselves masters of colours, guns,
and signal books, even to the private signals. Whether he
abandoned her under his own notion, or under orders of his
senior officer, remains to be seen ; one or the other will lose
his commission, and very rightly so. We are exceedingly
angry at the cowardice, and the consequent disgrace inflicted
on the Navy.

Admiral Berkeley told Captain Stopford that we should be
home by Christmas ; perhaps it may be so ; it is not impro-
bable. In that case I shall lose no time in working for the
Instructorship, a matter of very considerable consequence to me.

352 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

and without which I shall not go to sea again, preferring to
sacrifice the time I have spent here to the chance of such a
horrible life without a compensation.

Report says we are again to open a bombardment shortly.
I do not know whether this is the case or not. The weather
is so fearfully hot that men cannot work at all in the middle
of the day. Even the Russians cease all efforts until the
shades of evening afford them some kind of shelter.

I hope my next ship, if t have one, will be in the Baltic ;
then I shall be among new scenes, and come home every
winter. We are losing a good many of our old messmates.
The Admiral goes home to-day. The paymaster and the
doctor are also both going, and will be replaced by others.
Captain Stopford joined on Saturday. I have only just
spoken to him. He has been out of the ship for the last two
or three days at the court-martial. It is so strange seeing
little Admiral Michell walking about in plain clothes, a black
coat being an extraordinary " rig " on board ship. I suppose
he will never go afloat again, being almost too weak for active
service. He is a little man of tender health, of which he takes
very great care.

If we do come home we shall be in Plymouth by January,
and, perhaps, also be paid off before the end of the month. I
shall spend a week at home, and then I hope to be able to bury
myself for several months far, far away from an3^hing but
books, books, books, with not the sight or sound of a ship or
anything relating to it.

I see the Times is complaining again of the want of pro-
motion in the Naval Brigade. They have the " wrong sow by
the ear " this time. The promotions there have been very
numerous, but Mr. Russell's friend, a " hard bargain " of an
Irishman, has not been promoted ; hence the row. When does
Captain Scobell bring on his motion for reform of the Navy ?

353

CHAPTER XXIX.

A FORMIDABLE fleet of British and French ships, under 1855 '
the command of the Honourable R. S. Dundas, C.B.,
and Admiral Penaud, had been in the Baltic all the
summer. The Gulf of Riga was blockaded, and some
Russian vessels destroyed, but, like the Fleet under Sir
Charles Napier, this second great Expedition had not
accomplished results adequate to the armament
employed.

Kronstadt was examined from a safe distance, but
its invulnerable defences would have repelled any
attempts at bombardment ; the ships of the Tsar
did not come out, and the ships of the Allies prudently
did not go in, but at length, in August, the Admirals
decided that something of importance must be
attempted.

The defences of Sveaborg had been immensely
increased ; the number of batteries seawards might
well have made the fortress appear impregnable,
except to an inexhaustible naval force ; and, when a
bombardment was determined upon, the plan of opera-
tions was "limited to such destruction of the fortress
and arsenal as could be accomplished by means of
mortars.* This was a necessary precaution, as the
sunken ships made near approach to the islands (on
which Sveaborg was built) extremely dangerous. The
bombardment began on the 9th of August, and con-
tinued day and night, for

" If it were done when 'tis done, then 'twere well
It were done quickly,"

* Despatch from Admiral DundaSi

354 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

i8ss was, no doubt, the conception of the Admirals and
Blue-jackets too. The enemy made a gallant resist-
ance, but even the presence of the Grand Duke
Constantine could not prevent one or two in every
few hundred mortars — contract quality to boot — being
effective.

At the end of the second day, when explosions in
magazines had set fire to the town, a blackened ruin
alone remained ; though walls stood, the destruction
had spread rapidly, and the loss of 2,000, with many
wounded, accrued to the Russians. The British lost
not a man, and had only 28 wounded.

We refrain from destroying Helsingfors, and the

enemy is grateful. If it could have been done with

safety to our ships, why not ? In war time, till victory

to all arms is assured, destruction is the custom. Alas

for custom ! No doubt the people of Helsingfors, who

have to succour the wounded, bless the foreign

Admirals for their exceeding gentleness. " What

will not people bless in their extreme need .'* " But

we may be sure that some of the bolder Blue-jackets

''blessed" the discretion of their commanders in quite

another fashion.

« * * * *

It is the month of harvest, but who, in this sweltering
heat, either in Sevastopol or on the Upland, is thinking
of ripened grain or corn stooks ? The long days are
full of musketry fire, doubt, and conjecture ; the brief
nights of risk, surprise, and bursting shells which light
up the sky like splendid meteors. The enemy still
keeps the Allies at bay ; no articulate cry from the
docile Russian soldiers, who, each with his allotted,
perilous task, whether sortie or defence, fulfils it
doggedly till shot or shell causes him to disappear, and
to be replaced. Is it dull despair, taciturnity, or sense
of duty which makes these ill-cared for, and ill-
rewarded units of an inflexible system, so stolid and
indifferent ?

O 5

>•

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 355

In the hour of truce, while taking up their 1855
wounded and burying their slain, besieged and be-
siegers converse as frankly as their different nation-
alities permit ; the opportunity might be the interval
between the rounds of a mimic fight for all the
personal repugnance shown. In presence of the dead,
consciousness of the finality and flimsiness of the
objects, a few moments ago, paramount to these
unshriven victims, must be forcibly thrust into the
minds of the survivors, however familiar circumstances
may have made them with this ghastly aspect of the
King of Terrors.

The Russians were well aware that another bom-
bardment must shortly take place, and had good
reason to dread their artillery being silenced. There
was diversity of opinion in Sevastopol concerning the
operations to be pursued. The Generals differed about
the advisability of taking the offensive ; attacking the
Allies in the field ; or biding the siege. Todleben had
been removed to his country house by the Belbec,
and there Prince Gorschakoff sought him in consulta-
tion. The dauntless engineer's idea was to " bring
the field army to reinforce the garrison, and to hurl both
against the besiegers' lines." *

The various strategic plans resulted in a determined
attack on the i6th instant on the rear of the Allied
position, which was resolutely defended by the French
and Sardinians. The battle of the Tchernaya may be
said to have been the last hope of the besieged. It
was afterwards acknowledged that the Russian purpose
was to " wipe out " our Right, or " to drive it back upon
the Centre " ; and, by obtaining a sure victory, to
impose such great discomfiture on the Allies that the
siege would be raised.

The attack was directed against the French position
on the Fedouikine Hills, and that of the Sardinians, to
the right of the French, on hills along the stream. The

* " The War in the Crimea," page 268.— General Sir E. Hanley.

23*

356 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1855 outposts of the latter extended on the opposite side
close to Tchorgoun, and Lord George Paget states
that the Tractir Bridge across the Tchernaya was the
centre of the Russian line of attack.* The Sardinians
were driven in from their outposts ; the enemy had
determined to get possession of Mount Hasfort, from
which they hoped to obtain complete command of the
French position on the Fddouikine Heights. Troops
from the Belbec had augmented those which now were
in vast numbers to be opposed to the Allies. Some of
these had recently made such long marches, they were
too footsore to advance willingly, but the tactics, as at
Inkerman, were to press on the front regiments by
masses behind, and thus to gain a footing on the
much-coveted Allied position.

General Read marred Prince Gorschakoff s primary
manoeuvre by attacking the French position too soon ;
he paid for it with his life, for a fierce cannonade met
the advance. Though Russian troops crossed the
river by the bridge and by fording, hundreds never
recrossed it. The Aqueduct (four feet deep by eight
feet broad) proved a deadly barrier, for its sides were
perpendicular ; and in getting over, formation was
necessarily destroyed ; and here a galling fire from
the French artillery proved the mettle of the Russians,
many of whom forced the way at the point of the
bayonet.

The fighting was not confined to any one part of
the river bank. The terrible encounter was in several
sections, and continued upwards of an hour. Gor-
schakoff meant to have evolved his later tactics on
succeeding in the preliminary manoeuvres in which he
was foiled ; and the contest was waged against deter-
mined French and Sardinian troops who were splendidly
led. The gallant Bersagliari justified their right to
be considered a brave military force, driving the
enemy before them, while confusion and wild dis-

* "The Light Cavalry Brigade in the Crimea," page 238.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 357

order were frequently the fate of the Russian attacking 1855
regiments.

The climax of the battle was reached when the
French were commanded to charge down the hill,
and many of the Russian soldiers were driven into
the Aqueduct. The scene was beyond description ;
"the little canal was regularly choked with dead,
wounded, and retreating men," * but those who escaped
to the other side, not being actually pursued, opened a
heavy musketry fire on their opponents.

In another part of the contested ground, there was an
attempt to turn the tide by an attack towards the valley
of Balaklava, but this was frustrated by General de la
Marmora, who sent a Division to bar the way ; and
the Sardinians fought so desperately they forced the
Russians to retreat across the river.

Although British cavalry and artillery were in reserve,
only " one of the new heavy batteries of the English
artillery was actively engaged, "t

The enemy's retreat was covered by artillery and
cavalry, but the repulse was complete, for "a French
force had been sent down the road leading to the bridge
to take them in flank." | The principal Russian
endeavour had been against the French position and
all round the Tractir Bridge. After the battle there
was a terrible scene : mutilation, slaughter, and death
agony, depicted on every side, " the Zouaves, as usual,
having borne the brunt of the fight." §

Tchorgoun was reoccupied by the Sardinians ; and,
in the gallant encounter, they had also regained their
conical hill.

It would almos't be invidious to name the leaders

* " Letters from Headquarters," page 387.

t " It was placed on the high ground occupied by the Sardinian troops, and
opened with most murderous effect upon the flank of the retiring Russian
columns, the shot and shell ploughing through their ranks and mowing down
their men by whole sections." — Ibid, p^e 391.

X Ibid, page 238.

§. " The Light Cavalry Brigade in the Crimea," page 237. — Lord George Paget.

358 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1855 where so great a number distinguished themselves,
but, on the Russian side, those engaged included the
foremost Generals ; and, among the French, Camou,
Herbillon, Faucheux, Forgeot, and many others. The
intrepid Sardinians lost General Montevecchio early in
the struggle.

The enemy had left behind enormous numbers of
slain. Russian prisoners, too, had had to betake them-
selves to Balaklava ; " three Generals, 60 officers, and
2,300 men killed. There were 160 officers and 4,000
of other ranks wounded. The French had 1,500
casualties and the Sardinians 250." *

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

August 1 8th, 1855.

We heard three days ago of the bombardment of Sveaborg,
and the burning of the place. I suppose in England you are
now in full possession of all the particulars.

Our lines commenced yesterday a heavy fire on the Redan,
with a view of crushing that work so as to advance. The
Russians replied with great spirit, and one of their first shots
struck Commander Hammett in the stomach and cut him in
two. He died instantly. I daresay you will recollect, he was
lent to us for two months before our present commander
joined, and he was my companion and cicerone in those many
visits to the French advanced trenches, of which I gave you
some account. Poor fellow ! he was full of courage, but no
discretion ; and to this failing he owed his death. He was
standing on a gun looking at the Russian works through his
glass when the round shot killed him. When he left us he
joined the Brigade, and played the fool there a good deal ; he
was always attempting impossible shot, and overloading guns,
by which he burst three of them and killed four men. A few
days before he was smoking his pipe on top of the parapet
looking at the Russians, as his custom was, when he saw a
shot coming, and had barely time to throw himself off when it
tipped the parapet in the exact spot where he had been sitting.
The day he went to the trenches he got an order for himself

* "The Crimea in 1854 and 1894," page 352, — General Sir Evelyn Wood,

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 359

and me to go to the Mamelon, but, perhaps fortunately for 1855
me, I could not go. The place was then ploughed by shot
and shell, and I doubt if I could have made up my mind to
have entered so heavy a fire without the call of duty, or the
allurement of reward ; and yet I should have been afraid to
have turned tail and had the laugh against me. He is gone
now, and we could have better spared a better man. Our
present commander is an exceedingly nice fellow, a nephew of
Lord Devon. A quiet going, gentlemanly man, and a good
officer. The captain I have barely seen ; he has been a great
deal out of the ship hitherto.

A French soldier was shot for desertion on the beach to-day,
within sight of the ship. I cannot think how it is men can
desert to such a place as Sevastopol.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

August 2 1st, 1855.

I suppose by this time you have returned from Warwick
and are safely at home. You will have heard in the news-
papers the whole accounts of the battle of the Tchernaya,
which was fought with such success a short time since between
the French, Sardinians, and the Russians. The latter, we
hear, are very badly off for provisions ; and, if the place was
invested, it would be ours, perhaps, in a few days. No one
can think why such is not the case ; there seems to be no real
difficulty in the movement, but it is not done. Yesterday I
went with our new captain to the camp, and, having borrowed
some horses from John Adye, we rode out to Inkerman. By
permission of the commandant of the Redout du 5 Novembre
(the Guards' Redoubt) we passed on to the edge of the hill,
and had a good look into the valley of Inkerman and Tcher-
naya. The caves of Inkerman have lurking parties of Russians
living in them ; and also on the road, towards Mackenzie's
farm, they are encamped in strong force. I never went to
Inkerman without wondering how the Russians could have got
up there in such numbers undiscovered. It would be like a
large army, with guns and all, climbing up the steep part of
Hampton Rocks unperceived, with a great army at the top.
At the time of the battle there was but an old two-gun battery,
without guns; hence the disaster. Now the place is strongly
defended.

36o FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

185s For the last few days a heavy bombardment has been kept
up by our Right Attack against the Russian works, in order to
enable the French to sap forward undisturbed on their Right.
They have effected the desired purpose, and now all is
" peace " again. Everything is exceedingly healthy in the camp,
supplies plentiful, and the troops well. A few cases of cholera
and fever exist here and there, but in the Naval Brigade there
are only twelve sick, and those wounded men.

The other night two dogs went out with their master ; one
was struck by a shell and killed, to the dismay of its com-
panion, who yelled frantically at seeing its poor comrade
knocked to pieces. The affair created quite a sensation.

It is not known who will have the vacancy, but it is gene-
rally supposed some flag-ship " puppy " will be promoted, in
accordance with the custom which does not give death vacancies
to the Brigade.

Captain Hammett's vacancy has been filled up by the
appointment of a young officer of the name of Pasley, about
twenty-four years of age, the son of Sir Thomas Pasley, of
the Agamemnon, promoted, simply as a matter of favour, over
the heads of many men senior to himself, who have served all
through the affair, and have never been absent a single day
from the Brigade. The appointment has caused a great deal
of disgust, as well it may.*

I was not able to go and see John Adye, our time being
limited, but I had a note from him to say Mortimer was with
him and quite well now, so I presume at the next bombard-
ment he will resume his place in the trenches. It is said we
open fire again in about fourteen days, and then make an
attempt upon the Malakoff and Redan. The weather has
become much cooler and pleasanter than it was. We are
threatened with heavy weather earlier this year than last.

* . . . put over the heads of at least five or six lieutenants of the Naval
Brigade — lieutenants of ten years' standing, or even more, and who have now
passed eight months in the trenches and been in four bombardments. This
needs no comment from me, but it may be thought to reiiuire explanation from
those who ordain and sanction a system of preference which, to persons uniniti-
ated in the mysteries of naval promotions, must seem unjust. In one point of
view, it is an invidious task to draw public attention to such a case as this ; but
it should always be understood that no slur is intended to be cast on the person
preferred. Lieutenant Pasley may be a most meritorious officer, but one naturally
feels curious to become acquainted with the services that entitle him to walk over
his seniors, who for two-thirds of a year have been engaged in actual and severe
warfare . . .—"The War," page 82.— W. H. Russell.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 361

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

August 28th, 1855.

I have little to say to you to-day, but write, as usual, by the
mail, which leaves here this afternoon.

Yesterday there was a grand spectacle at Headquarters.
All the captains and commanders of the Fleet rode to see the
investure of the Orders of the Bath. The day was a sweltering
one, and many of the naval officers felt incommoded by heat,
heavy dress uniforms, and the dragoon saddles they had to
ride upon. Few of the military officers were there, for all the
troops were under arms expecting an attack from the whole
Russian force in the direction of Baidar.

Information has reached Headquarters that 140,000 of the
enemy will take the field, and would have done so before but
that they were utterly dispirited by the severe thrashing they
received at the hands of the French and Sardinians at the
Tchernaya. They are also, we hear, very badly off for food,
and for water their only supply of it being obtained from the
Belbec, a small river about six miles north of Sevastopol,
partially dry in the heat of summer. The large number of
cavalry now with them, 12,000 or 15,000, it is said, adds to
the want of water ; they literally " drink the river dry."

On Friday last an officer from the 47th Regiment came on
board to see a relative of his who belongs to us. The poor
fellow had had a rather bad attack of the country fever, but
was getting well ; the heat, and the fatigue of the journey down,
brought on diarrhoea, and, on Sunday evening last, as I was
sitting alone with him, he suddenly ceased to breathe. We
have felt his loss a good deal ; first of all, because he had been so
neglected by the medical men on shore that he came to us almost
for cure, and also because, within a few hours of his death, we
confidently hoped he would get over his illness. I buried him
yesterday morning in a little graveyard on shore. I do not
know whether any general charge of neglect ought to be
brought against the medical men in the Army, for more than
a hundred are sick at hospital ; but still it is certain that they
are very cool hands, and take it uncommonly easy. One of
our lieutenants was dangerously wounded in the trenches a
few days ago. A shell burst over his head and a piece struck
him in the groin, laying' bare the femoral artery. It was a
narrow escape of his life.

362

CHAPTER XXX.

1855 The summer had been sickly, and the end of August
proved a period of great anxiety for the Allies ;
reports of large Russian re-inforcements were rife ; the
Imperial Guards from the Belbec were supposed to
be 20,000 strong,* and another attack, similar to
that of the Tchernaya, appeared imminent. The
French and Sardinians constructed earthworks, and
increased their batteries commanding the directions by
which the enemy was likely to approach ; a Highland
Brigade was encamped at Kamara, " to support the
right -of the Sardinians, and also more completely
to enclose the valley of Balaklava." t

The terrific cannonade, opened on the 17th, from
800 pieces of ordnance,| had added to difficulties in
Sevastopol which were fast becoming insurmountable ;
Prince Michael (iorschakoff did not need to be a
pessimist to be sure the besieged could not hold out
indefinitely. Evils were accumulating. Food was
scarce, and disease spreading rapidly. The daily in-
creasing number of wounded was a terrible strain.
The press of dying men, who could not be moved
because of risk to their bearers ; and the press of
living men, who, in vulnerable positions, had to dis-
regard the tortures of those struck down at their side,
made a confusing and sickening spectacle.

Although the mortars of the Allies prevented the

* " Diary of the Crimean War," page 355. — F. Robinson, M.D.

t " Letters from Headquarters," page 395.

} " The Crimean in 1854 and 1894," page 355. — General Sir Evelyn Wood.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES, 363

replacement of disabled guns,* "the only honourable 1855
course left was to defend the south side to the last
extremity." t The baffled Generals did not offer to
surrender. Prudence, however, suggested the con-
struction of a floating bridge across the harbour, and
barricades in the streets ; large quantities of straw
having been brought into the town, were utilized in
preparation for blowing up the forts when evacuation
became expedient.

Absolute secrecy regarding the tactics determined
upon was maintained by the Commanders-in-Chief of
the Allied Armies, but the siege works were steadily
pushed forward. The French, having fully manned
the Mamelon, were subjected there to frequent re-
minders of the proximity* of Fort Constantine, while
the bursting of a shell in their magazine on the
night of the 27th, cost them, in killed and wounded,
150 men, and 15,000 pounds of gunpowder. J * The
English immediately bombarded the Malakoff and the
Redan, to ward off the sortie that might have added
to this calamity ; and the best marksmen of various
regiments were sent to the fifth parallel, in order that
their fire should prevent the Russians making good
the damage done to the latter fort.

The French sap now trended on the Abattis of the
Malakoff, which Sir John Burgoyne, from the first,
had held to be the key to Sevastopol ; and the English
trenches extended to within 196 yards of the salient
angle of the Redan. § The invincible toilers on both
sides, who daily carried their lives in their hands,
could hear each other at work, and were in constant
dread of mines exploding.

The lack of sufficient sleep ill-fitted the British
soldiers for their long tasks in these trenches ; the

* " The War in the Crimea,'' page 274. — General Sir E. Hamley.
t Prince Gorschakoff's Despatch to his Government,
X " Letters from Headquarters," page 397.
§ Ibid, page 398.

364 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1855 harrying surprises, and the enemy's ceaseless fire upon
those engaged on the advanced works, told terribly.
Placing new batteries in position, to cover the Russian
forts, was a death-dealing duty, these batteries having
always to be armed under heavy fire.

To endeavour with honest purpose to verify the
details of any great conflict, naturally leads to ethical
comment : the persistent, heroic, though humble, ful-
filment of duty, which resulted neither in reward nor
distinction to the individual, was the general character-
istic of those engaged in the campaign ; and how
frequent the proof that bravery was universally
inherent, and not the peculiar endowment of any
favoured race ! It was the inexhaustible asset which
certain Governments largely drew upon to cover their
own defalcations and mistakes. Even had the troops
of all the belligerents been inspired by the religious
fervour of a Crusade, they could not have endured to
the death more courageously.

It is a striking fact that soldiers whose miseries
might almost excuse revolt, will ardently persevere in
hostilities long after the actual war-makers have tired
of the quarrel, for which they are unmurmuringly giving
all they have to give. Some of them in the Crimea
could have known nothing of the reasons for which
there was such vast and precious expenditure ; but the
same dogged, invincible determination that neither
privations, enemies, nor any other creature, should
conquer them, appears to have been the spirit
animating both the Russian and Allied Armies alike.
Both sides evinced an unsurpassed tenacity under
circumstances that might well have evoked a strangely
different temper.

The devastation within the citadel warned the
Garrison that their colossal tragedy was approaching its
end, but the poor luckless actors had yet another scene
in which to play their grim inevitable part, and, to
many, it proved the ghastly death scene that was

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 365

followed neither by applause, nor the brief ceremony of 1855
decent burial.

The protracted war had vexed Europe to the verge
of impatience ; the Allied Generals were aware of this
fact, but, though they had the mortification of reading,
in a certain sapient journal, of the fall of Sevastopol,
some time before that event actually occurred, Sep-
tember found them still with the stupendous task of
an assault fronting them.

Everything ingenuity can devise, to harass and
annoy, is tried : the Allies resort to strangest con-
trivances : the position chosen for guns is so near the
enemy's outposts they have to be muffled to get them
into place.

Salvoes of musketry do not deter.

Some of the more recklessly experimental put
charges of powder in with their bullets, but it kills too
soon ; it does not reach the enemy !

The Naval Brigade will not relax offensive demon-
strations, and the Blue-jackets' zest for perilous duty
in the batteries is undiminished. Jack fires specially
effective shots ; and there is much cheering and waving
on the parapet, notwithstanding specially effective
response from the Russians.*

A general assault was at length determined upon, to
be preceded, on the 5th, by a bombardment to silence
the enemy's guns. The French were first to attempt
the Malakoff, while the British were to await the signal
of its capture.

A lovely September morning dawned upon that part
of the " harmless earth " that was so soon to be a
scene of wildest destruction. It was ushered in by a

* " They grumbled if they were not allowed to offer themselves as a certain
pot shot at 30 yards to Russian sharpshooters. They had their own way of firing,
and they rooa/i? stick to it. The N.B. would fire broadsides. There was always
something the matter with the guns till the last one in the battery was loaded,
then, with or without orders, away went the broadside and the gunners jumped
up on the parapet, each to watch his own shot." — Inside Sevastopol.

366 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

185s tremendous cannonade begun by the French, followed
by the British, and kept up with astonishing vigour
from 800 guns and mortars, principally directed against
the Russian earthworks. The garrison appeared to be
almost stunned by the sudden and gigantic character of
the attack, but presently responded in a precise manner
betokening scarcity of ammunition. Artillerymen were
killed by scores ; and it must have been difficult for the
enemy to replace gunners exposed to certain death. In
a despatch describing the final stage of the siege. Prince
Gorschakofif recognises how effectively the attack
commenced : " This infernal fire, directed more par-
ticularly against the embrasures and the merlons, proved
that the enemy was endeavouring to dismount our guns,
and to destroy our ramparts, in order that they might
carry the town by assault;" which was exactly what the
enemy was aiming at.

In the evening a shell lighted and burst upon a
frigate in the harbour, an especial cause of satisfaction
to the Blue-jackets in the batteries, for many curious
ejaculations had been flung after shells which had
hitherto failed to reach the ships.

During the bombardment the enemy lost from 1,000
to 1,500 daily,* but response to the fire of the Allies
gradually became feebler. It has been frequently sug-
gested that this weak response was consequent on the
dread of the assault beginning at any moment ; and that
the fullest power and resistance had to be reserved.

Six line-of-battle ships sunk at their moorings might
well be regarded by the superstitious in the beleaguered
town as an evil omen ; and, hard pressed as they were,
a slighter catastrophe might have served as portent of
disastrous failure.

The bridge was now being used industriously,
loaded wagons passing over it to the north side, and
returning empty.

" The Redan will be assaulted after the French

* " Letters from Headquarters," page 404.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 367

have attacked the Malakoff," was the first item of the 1855
Divisional After Order on the 7th September. This
•command was followed by instructions about the
divisions and brigades from which the attacking,
storming, and covering parties were to be formed ;
and there occurs this curious sentence concerning the
ladder party of 100 men of the 97 th Regiment with
the first stormers : " They must be good men and
true to their difficult duty, which is to arrive at the
ditch of the Redan and place the ladders down it," etc.
A bland kind of guerdon this Divisional After Order ;
but many of those whom it concerned received no
more. One is tempted to believe the British (and
many another) soldier does his duty because certain
<iuties " have got to be done." That is his colloquial
way of regarding deeds that the looker-on calls heroic,
he being generally much astonished on those very rare
occasions when he finds himself singled out for reward.

On the day of assault the weather was more autumnal,
and the ships of the Allies were thus prevented from
taking part, as, under a heavy sea close in shore, they
could not have manoeuvred advantageously ; their fire
would have been unsteady, and would have possibly
endangered their own troops. Mortar vessels were
employed in the bay of Streletska (to fire on the
Quarantine Fort), the only place where their fire could
be utilized.* It was a great chagrin to the Blue-jackets
that the boisterous weather compelled the Fleet to
remain at anchor.

Pelissier rightly judged that at the hour of the
Russian mid-day meal there would be fewer men at the
batteries, and on the watch, and he decided that then
the attempt should be made. His calculation proved
correct. The French from their advanced trench
•suddenly emerged, pressed forward, crossed the ladders
which had been flung over the ditch, and crowded into
the Malakoff, where, taking the Russians by surprise,

* " Life of Lord Lyons," p^e 343. — Captain Eardley Wilmot, R.N.

368 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

they gained possession of the key to Sevastopol.
Other French divisions simultaneously rushed forward
to the little Redan, where their losses in killed and
wounded were very great.

General Simpson, receiving the signal agreed upon,
gave the order for the advance of the British troops
upon the salient of the Redan ; but surprise was no
longer possible, and these "good men and true " of the
storming and ladder parties met a heavy fire of grape.
Some got beyond the salient and right up to the
Redan, where the resistance was terrible, and
innumerable officers and men were either shot dead or
mortally wounded. The 200 yards of open which had
to be crossed to reach the parapet, was fatal ground,
and there were not sufficient supports coming forward,
for most of these, at the time, might as well have been
in England. There being great bodies of soldiers
behind the work, reinforcements should have been
pushed on without stint. The advancing troops, having
lost their formation under the galling fire, hesitated.
The guns in the Malakoff had been spiked by the
French, and these could not be turned on the over-
whelming numbers, who, pressing forward in crowds,
opposed the attack. All who had succeeded in enter-
ing the Redan had now to retire.

The enemy tries hard before midnight to regain
entrance to the Malakoff, but even legions are of no
avail against the French, whose footing is firmly estab-
lished at this vital point. "

The combat has to be deferred till next day.

Next day the memorable resistance of the south side
of Sevastopol is at an end.

Hard-pressed, hemmed in, distraught, and hopelessly
overtaxed, its vigilant defenders recognize how useless
it is to prolong the siege ; and a dexterously-devised
retreat appears to be their last despairing chance of

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 369

safety. Surely as ignominious a plight for Grand 1855
Dukes, high-born generals, and unsurrendering soldiers,
as for the poor, ruined townsfolk, who, in the kindly-
covering darkness, must try to escape from their own
planned conflagrations, and from the fire and sword of
the Allies, who do not yet attempt to enter the
citadel.

What can they do now, these valorous, frustrated
subjects of the loyally-served Little Father ? Deliver-
ance not forthcoming, steamers and boats of all
descriptions are kept employed ; the bridge too is
crowded. Thousands are being conveyed across the
harbour to that invincible north side which the enemy
will not capture ; will not even attack ; the evacuation
of the town should surely satisfy Diplomacy — and who
can want more ?

The Garrison and many of the wounded are getting
over quickly enough ; there are numbers too scamper-
ing pell-mell to the other side, numbers who must be
astonished at their own hairbreadth 'scapes ; and many
of those who have not time to realize any indignity in
taking to their heels, and who are killed in the essay,
do they not also find safety, and protection, in some
redeeming, merciful Other Side, divinely appointed,
towards which all the desperate, hunted, horror-struck,
and bewildered, are consciously, or unconsciously,
hurrying ?

Between 30,000 and 40,000 have gone from the
town ; disappeared beyond musket range ; and the bridge
itself, the part of it nearest the Allies, is being towed
across at dawn. A brilliant, notable movement this
evacuation ; a swift and cleverly executed bit of strategy,
though it appears somewhat ignoble for Grand Dukes,
Generals, and the rest, to stampede ; it must not be
forgotten, however, that Grand Dukes may, like the
rest, consider any contrivance preferable to being made
prisoners, and some there be who see little glory in being
killed when the cause is hopeless.

370 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1855 The tremendous noises entailed by the diabolic
devastation ; the lurid fires, smoke and din ; the
ceaseless reverberation ; the hastening multitudes ; the
moans of the untended dying ; and the sight of the
impeding dead, make, in the sweet summer night, a
Pandemonium baffling description. The awful con-
flagration continues on the day and night of the 9th ;
explosions in magazines are frequent. The burning of
two line-of-battle ships adds to the horrors, while flames
are rising up through the smoke that covers the town
like a canopy. The colossal ruin is well seen from
Cathcart's Hill, and from Lord Lyons' station outside ;
he thus described the absolut.e destruction of the vessels
in the harbour : " Six remaining ships of the line sunk
at their moorings, leaving no more of the late Russian
Black Sea Fleet than two dismasted corvettes and nine
steamers, most of which are very small."

The naval devastation is indeed complete, when the
helpless hulk of the Twelve Apostles is seen to be
hurled over.

Lord George Paget writes : " The cessation of fire
seems so odd to us. It is like an old clock ceasing to
tick." On the loth, after the French have invested
the town, and the British the suburb of Karabelnaya,
he adds : " The French have been plundering a good
deal, while on our side regiments are placed at all
entrances to the town, to make Englishmen disgorge
what they have taken, which makes our fellows very
savage." * Another writer also remarks : " The town
is now in the hands of the French, who are pillaging to
their hearts' content." f

Havoc and ruin everywhere meet the troops, but one
building containing 2,000 dead and dying victims, left
to chance, is still intact ; an hospital only in name ; for
is not the primitive meaning of that word, the place

* "The Light Cavalry Brigade in the Crimea," p^e 114.
t "Diary of the Crimean War," page 392. — F. Robinson, M.D.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 371

where guests are cared for and fed ? The tortured 1855
under this hospitable (!) roof have been two days without
food ; and there is ample, sickening evidence of scores
of humble tragedies that have been enacted within its
walls.

The humiliation of the failure to capture the Redan
grows less bitter when close examination shows how
invulnerable is the strength of the work. Colonel
Windham, who so greatly distinguished himself at the
assault, is made Major-General and Commandant of
that portion of Sevastopol occupied by the British.
General Bazaine becomes the French Commandant ;
and it is arranged that the immense naval stores,
guns, anchors and ammunition in the citadel, are to
be divided by a commission of French and English
officers.

The Union Jack and the Tricolor are now waving
over the Dance of Death, in and round the ruined
homes and wrecked public buildings of the town ;
and, there being so many corpses still unburied, for a
few hours jubilation must be deferred. During the
siege the "Widows of Mercy" had laboured perse-
veringly, but towards the end the numbers of sick
and wounded had appallingly increased, and the
majority of the sufferers had to die untended. These,
as well as the troops of the Allies killed in the assault
— all " the mutually-destroying " victims — have to be
interred.* So, the sorrowfullest task for men, who
have themselves just escaped death, putting out of
sight the remains of those who, a few hours before,
were their cheery, faithful comrades, is quickly
performed.

Conquest moves rapidly : the Cathedral is converted
into a Roman Catholic Church for the use of the
French, and, in it, on the i6th of September, " a wall of
gabions surrounding the altar,f is celebrated a solemn

* See Appendix VI. for list of numbers slain at the taking of Sevastopol,
t "Diary of the Crimean War," p^e 406.— F. Robinson, M.D.

24*

372 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

185s Te Deum for the capture of the town. To the English
troops is relegated another church, for there is oppor-
tunity now for religious observance. Ecclesiastical ritual
is ill-fitted for war times ; though all things may be
lawful, many that are ordained are not then expedient.
In a campaign devotional soldiers have to lapse back
into the primitive ways of our Lord's disciples, praying
anywhere, and everywhere ; worshipping in numerous
uncanonized methods. But frequently the ideal of
conduct, common to these rank and file, is

" Not fearing death, nor shrinking for distress,
But always resolute in most extremes " ;

SO haply it may be accounted to them for righteousness.
When men have daily to face risks, and dangers,
which, at any moment, may prove fatal, and are thus
brought in touch with life's greatest problems, they are
apt to turn direct to God for help, and to minimize the
importance of the rites and ceremonies which appear
less irksome and impeding when motive force is
feeble or non-existent. But now, if comfort be
discernible in these Russian churches, let the valiant
and the desponding alike betake themselves there to
pray, for the uncontrolled morrow has yet to come ; and
no triumph is complete till there be a Proclamation of
Peace.

There are no letters between August 28th and
September 1 5th. During the interval George Stothert
had arrived at the seat of war. He witnessed the
assault with the staff on Cathcart's Hill, and then went
on board the Queen, and was the chaplain's guest for
three days, off Sevastopol. The visit could not have
proved dull, for every gun in the ship was loaded, not
excepting the cannon that was pointed through his
cabin. Possibly, as Kelson Stothert had his brother's
society during these exciting days, the need for writing
home did not seem so imperative. The correspondence

■Si

c/l

CLi

t/}

C/3

C/5

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 373

must now be resumed, to obtain the graphic impression
of captured Sevastopol, which the letter of September
15 th ofifers.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
Off Sevastopol,

Sept. 15th, 1855.

George came to see me on Monday last, not being able to
make up his mind to leave until he had done so. A gale of
wind sprang up and he was sick in bed for 48 hours. I sent
him ashore at his urgent request in a French tub, and gave
him many directions for finding lodgings, etc. The next day
I went to look for him, and after a four hours' search returned
disappointed. I am hoping that he has found his way to
Constantinople with his friend Mr. Garrard.

Yesterday I went with our captain and several others to see
the ruins of Sevastopol. We inspected all the Russian lines,
and such a scene of destruction I could not have imagined.
I do not believe, in a circuit of 15 miles, there is a square
yard of ground without a splinter of shot or shell upon it.
The first place we went to was the Quarantine Fort, where a
tremendous explosion took place during the fight. The
whole interior is covered with the debris of the walls. It was
evacuated in great haste, the guns not having been spiked, and
the magazine full of powder. In one place where a sentry's post
had been, the man had left his musket leaning against the
wall, he having most probably taken to his heels.

We then entered the town by the famous loopholed wall,
and Sevastopol was before us. It was at once obvious why
our seaward batteries had made so little impression. The
high buildings and houses, which had appeared so close to the
wall, were more than a mile distant, separated by a deep
ravine. However, shot and shell from various quarters had
left their mark on every shattered wall and perforated roof
By virtue of a pass we went to Fort Alexander, containing
165 casemates looking seaward, each casemate armed with a
heavy gun and affording lodging for 1 5 or 20 men. A long,
open gallery connects every part of the work. In the base-
ment story of this enormous fort, we observed several cuttings,
which, at the time of the bombardment, were being driven
under supporting walls for the purpose of exploding the

374 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

whole. The workmen were interrupted, the tools lying as
they had been dropped. From this spot we ascended to the
highest part of the town, to visit what had been a club house.
This is a fine building, with a basso-relievo slab of some
Russian historical subject, which we could not understand.
The club is a copy of the Museum at Kertch ; near it is
also a replica of the Temple of the Winds at Athens.

We were disappointed with the town of Sevastopol ; it is
very irregular and, of course now, very dirty. The public
buildings are fine, but apparently built by the same contract
as those supplied " per invoice " to every town in Russia : so
many dozen Governors' houses, so many dozen churches,
schools, etc., distributed after Government pattern to each
province, where they are set up in the midst of the most
squalid neighbourhoods, without regard to tciste or position.
This is all the civilisation of which Russia can boast. There
is nothing of spontaneous or home growth ; no sign of the
working of a people's mind ; nothing constructively original ;
all things indicate an iron-handed rule.

From the town we descended the hill to the water's side and
entered the Dockyard. Little was left here, the devastation
having been complete. A few boats riddled with shot, and
the charred remains of ships, being all that was visible, except
guns. These were in very perfect order, and in large numbers ;
we counted 1,900, and then left off. Walking round the edge of
Dockyard Creek we soon came to the docks, passing on our
road many storehouses, where troops of English soldiers were
" looting," and where occasionally the foetid smell of a decay-
ing corpse betrayed the last hiding place of some devoted
barbarian.

We arrived suddenly among the actual wonders of
Sevastopol ; and here all that we had heard of its glories
faded away before the magnificent reality. First we inspected
a dock where ships of the largest size are hauled up out of
the water, or launched again, by means of a cradle placed in
a tram road. This is the work of the Englishman Upton.
Then we came to the intended Government foundry, whose
walls were rising to the height of ten feet over a space of
nearly 1 2 acres ; part of this space was obtained by cutting
away the spur of a mountain. The remainder of the hill was
upheld by a freestone wall, every stone beanTifully squared and
fitted, to the height of 350 feet ! ! ! This wall cost 6o,OCK),ooo
roubles. We had the advantage here of joining the party
of two English engineers who had been employed for many

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 375

years in Sevastopol, who became our guides, and gave us a
great deal of information.

We then went to see the famous docks, which consist of a
series of locks like canal locks, the upper end being 20 feet
higher than the entrance lock, which is even with the level
of the sea. The upper end has three locks abreast, then

comes a compartment equal in area
to three, then again three more, the
middle one of which is entered by
three other locks from the harbour,
making altogether nine chambers as
it were, and the large space in the
middle. These are all dry, but can
be filled by water pumped into them by two steam engines.
Each chamber is 270 feet long, 60 feet wide, and contains from
25 to 37 feet of water at pleasure. A large ship may be floated
into an upper lock, all the water can then be let off, and th e
ship left in her cradle as dry as if on shore. The docks with
their magnificent masonry, copings of gigantic granite blocks,
steam engines, iron gates, with the aqueduct for bringing down
water from the Tchernaya, cost 20 millions English pounds.
In one of the docks a steamer had been burnt. All her
machinery was standing complete, but not a bit of wood re-
mained. The docks are all to be destroyed, and made one
undistinguishable mass. In fact Sevastopol is to be converted
into a desert for the owl and the bittern to roost in, and the
silent ruins alone will remain to tell of the disappointed
ambition of the great Emperor of the North.

From this point we skirted the harbour and passed through
the ruined faubourgs, made our way towards Careening Bay,
passing within easy cannon shot of the Russians on the north
side, who are working vigorously there in raising forts for our
reception. We stayed some time looking at them, and crossed
over to the little Redan, the central bastion, and reached the
Malakoff, which the French so successfully surprised, thus
winning Sevastopol. Its enormous strength has not been
over-rated. George will tell you all about it.

We then went to the Redan (where the storming party of
English had to run for shelter in all directions) and, skirting
the fortifications, returned to our ship on the opposite side
of the town to which we had entered, having made a circuit
of 1 5 miles. One sight I saw which filled me with horror. In
a ruined house 50 or 60 bodies had been thrown in a heap,
and were all swollen and disfigured, their ghastly wounds

376 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

festering and seething with corruption ; some of the corpses
were black, some green, and in all stages of decomposition,
exposed to the gaze of every passer by. It was too bad to
leave them so for even an hour. Nearly 5CX) bodies were
found in this state in a cellar the day before yesterday, and as
they were being removed for burial, a wretched, wounded
Russian from the midst of the horrible group staggered to his
feet, and implored protection, which of course was instantly
accorded. In the ruins of Fort Paul, which was blown into
the air, crowds of wounded are said to have perished. The
Russians have 40,000 sick, of whom neither the French nor we
are able to take care, so we are obliged to leave the enemy
unmolested, lest these, and more, should be thrown upon our
hands.

You will see a full account of our doings in the Times.
There is a rabid article against the Fleets in the last issue which
has reached us. Why did not Nelson go into Toulon or
Brest ? Because ships are meant for the sea, and not to run
up against stone walls.

You will be heartily tired of this rigmarole. Kindest
love to all.

377

CHAPTER XXXI.

The indomitable Naval Brigade was ordered to join the 1851
Fleet on the 17th September, but few of the Blue-
jackets who had come ashore in October, 1854, were
left to obey the command. As vacancies had occurred,
they had been filled up from the ships, and thus that
splendid arm of the Service had remained always
invincible.

When Lushington was promoted in July, Captain
Keppel* had assumed the command ; with Prince
Victor of Hohenlohe as his A.D.C. In his journal on
the iith September occurs this entry: — "Inspection
of the evacuated forts showed how destructive had
been our batteries, and how great a share the Naval
Brigade had in the fall of Sevastopol." On another
occasion he wrote of the Blue-jackets : " They are
decidedly the best shots, but take no care of them-
selves," which was high praise from so gallant a
source. To this day their invaluable services in the
Crimea evoke honourable mention ; and when their
duty was ended a General Order concerning them was
issued ; and is a lasting testimony : —

" The Commander of the Forces notices the patience
and courage with which, side by side, the soldiers of
the Army and the sailors have endured the dangers
and hardships of nearly a year's duty in the trenches.

* Now Sir Henry Keppel, Admiral of the Fleet.^^

378 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1855 It is only justice to the officers and men comprising
the Naval Brigade to state that throughout the entire
period of their being employed with the Army, the
greatest good feeling and cordiality has existed
between the two services.

" They were always most active and zealous ;
idleness never appeared to form part of their character ;
and when their batteries were not engaged, they freely
and voluntarily gave a helping hand with pick-axes and
shovels, and always appeared anxious to make them-
selves useful."

They had dragged up guns and ammunition in the
face of inconceivable difficulties ; they had come to
help the Army in innumerable emergencies ; " they had
manned the batteries, and during the siege served for
■^2) days of heavy bombardment and cannonade," * and
all through thp cruel winter their commissariat had
been very little care or trouble to anyone but them-
selves. True, their ardour had always sought swift
development in their own way, but their contrivances
to evade the tragic results of circumstances often
proved of importance to those to whom the sailors'
methods appeared ludicrous. Where a soldier would
sit down under certain conditions, and endure them
with unflinching courage. Jack would " set to " and
fight the circumstances till he had knocked them into
shape, somehow ingeniously keeping despair at bay.

History compels us to own that the rewards and
promotions were very rare indeed in the Naval
Brigade.

Doubtless their chaplain was thankful to have those
of his whilom "parishioners" who belonged to the
Queen back in the ship, away from the temptations of
camp life, for none knew better than he Jack's
impressionable nature : his facility for adapting himself

• "The War," page 223, vol. ii.— W. H. Russell,

CAPTAIN LUSHINGTON, R.N.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 379

to his surroundings had its grave, as well as its useful 1855
side.

The Alma medals were distributed on the 20th, the
anniversary of the battle. Several writers have
remarked the disappointment caused by the lack of
beauty of design both in the medal and the clasp ; their
readers are even led to suppose that the artistic taste
of the receivers was violated by its ugliness ; some
young troopers, whose baptism of fire had been in the
affair at Bulganak, said there should have been a bar
for it upon the medal.*

General Simpson received the Grand Cross of the
Legion of Honour from the Emperor of the French,
and Marshal Pelissier was created Knight Grand
Cross of the Bath. Field-Marshal Lord Gough was
sent specially from England by the Queen to confer
certain decorations, and- there was an imposing
ceremony in presence of the Allied Armies and many
Russian officers.

The siege, which had no historic parallel in unique-
ness of purpose — an avowed determination that the
Tsar's greed of power, and of territory, should be
curtailed — had displayed such a valorous cohesion of
the Allies as to call forth the most stupendous and
stubborn defence. Their gigantic efforts had culmi-
nated in a victory which made the South side of
Sevastopol tenable, but, half-conquerors as they were,
their position was now a perplexity to their Govern-
ments. Permanent occupation had never been con-
templated by the Allies. Britain, notwithstanding her
repute for envying her neighbour's ground, did not want
so distant a corner of Naboth's vineyard ; France had
no use for it ; to the Turks it would have been a costly
white elephant ; and to the Sardinians it could only have
been attractive as an ideal position for the Vatican.

* Lord George Paget frankly owned that he thought the man who was
responsible for the clasps " ought to be obliged to wear one," adding " they
already call them here, ' Port,' 'Sherry,' and ' Claret.' "

38o FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1855 But reasons, doubtless, appeared obvious enough at
the time why Russian armaments in the citadel should
be destroyed, and although we read " The Redan is
being surveyed by engineers with a view of imme-
diately placing it in a state of defence towards the
north side," where the enemy was now as busy fortifying
as he had been on the south, the English sappers and
miners were sinking mines to demolish the forts still
standing, and to blow up the docks. This deliberate
act of Vandalism was considered imperative, and
" never had man laboured more successfully to destroy
his own work." All that remained of Fort Paul after
it had been blown up on the night of the evacuation,
was a mound, but there were innumerable evidences of
skill and ingenuity which had yet to be wrecked and left
in ruins. Disarming batteries, too, was necessary; and
all these things were not done without reminders, to
those engaged, of the proximity of the enemy. The
Artillery of the -Northern forts was active enough, but
mortar batteries were soon erected to respond, and the
casualty list was not very important.

Although a march forward was spoken of, the season
was too far advanced ; the French Emperor counselled
an attack on Simpheropol, but the enemy not only had
strong positions to bar the way, but was taking up
others on the heights between.

General d'Allonville, with his light cavalry, had to
betake himself to Eupatoria there to help the Turks to
harass the Russians. A gallant charge defeated them
and 150 were made prisoners. In October, Lord George
Paget with his light cavalry joined D'Allonville, and,
so many of the Allies threatening, the Russians were
obliged to keep a considerable force at hand to protect
the roads by which their supplies were brought to the
North side. D'Allonville held that to attempt Sim-
pheropol would be a worse than useless manoeuvre with
the enemy well placed all the way from Inkerman, and
the advance was abandoned.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 381

There was no important movement attempted till the 1855
7th October, when an Expedition set out with Admiral
Bruat, Sir Edmund Lyons and Sir Houston Stewart in
command. As in the former visit of the Fleets to
Odessa, the European consuls, on seeing the masts of
the English and French ships, and the panic in the
town, called the attention of the Admirals to the fact
that a bombardment would risk the lives of many of
their own countrymen. The actual destination of the
Expedition, however, was not Odessa, but the bay of the
Dnieper, where the forts of Kinburn on the south side,
and Otchakoff on the north side of the entrance, would
have to be captured before the great shipbuilding town
of Nicolaieff, or the business port of Kherson, could be
bombarded. The occupation of the forts was the
object of the attack, and a fierce cannonade from both
the French and English ships ensued.

The garrison stood to their guns bravely, but
humanity prompted (he Russian leader to surrender,
for the struggle was hopeless. They marched out
with the honours of war, and the Governor, Kakono-
vitch, was given back his sword. The French floating
batteries here proved signally successful ; and the Allied
Admirals gracefully complimented each other's Fleet.
A reconnaissance proved that Nicolaieff could not be
approached by ships with large enough armament to
capture the town. It was arranged in conference that
the English were to go back to Sevastopol, and that
French troops should occupy Kinburn.

Todleben was summoned to Nicolaieff, for an attack
there appeared probable.

As will be seen by the following letters the Queen
did not accompany the Expedition. The writer had lost
many friends and comrades ; his health was broken ; the
rewards were nil ; the prospect of promotion extremely
vague ; and naturally his spirits, at this juncture, were
not of the most hopeful.

382 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
Beicos Bay, Constantinople,

October 6th, 1855.

We have just arrived. I find a host of letters which are to
be answered to-night, so you must be content with a few lines.
The circumstances mentioned by Mr. Kilbert are certainly in
reference to matters which I had entirely lost sight of since my
departure from England. I have seen the appointments of
many of my friends of late to Indian Chaplaincies, and
suppose that some valuable vacancies have been filled, in
which my name was mentioned : of this, however, I have no
knowledge at all. I thought I might have succeeded in
obtaining one of this sort, valuable to me solely as a provision
for life and a proper sphere of usefulness. Even if ofTered to
me now I hardly think that, after my rough experience, I should
take it. I long for the time when I may settle down once
more in my fatherland. When it comes I fear few of my early
associations will be left to me.

We expect to be Flagship to Admiral Grey. That is to
say, he is brother-in-law to the First Lord of the Admiralty
and has been given the Queen as a lodging house. His wife
and housemaid are coming to live on board ! Mrs. Grey " is
the better horse." I wish I were well out of it all. The
Albion goes home to-morrow, and I am sorely tempted to
go too.

I am still hoping to get away to Paris instanter, that by the
Spring I may qualify for Naval Instructor. Do try and find
me the money and leave of absence. I pant for really useful
employment. To-day I have been for a walk on shore. The
Bosphorus is looking lovely indeed. I went to the Giant's
Mill, through the famous Sultan's Valley. Besides this I called
on all my friends, and smoked innumerable pipes and quaffed
cups of coffee "countless as the sand." You would have
stared to have seen the party seated on little stools in the
open street, gravely puffing pipes in the centre of a group of
Turks, Armenians, Greeks and Italians. We are well known
here, and much liked ! Half the town rushed after us with
outstretched hand and " Khosh Gueldin " (You are welcome).
When here last an Army chaplain and I gave some lessons in
English to a smart young Armenian. My friend drew his

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 383

portrait. Our pupil enquired after him to-day, and told us
" He drew picture, gave me plenty beak. Oh yes, quite true.
Ver' well, good bye, yes " meaning that my friend made him
with a big nose. My friend is dead, alas ! Our young
Armenian shed tears over the fate of the " Papa's Inglees."
My heart warmed towards him.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

October loth, 1855.

Our sailing orders came on board early this morning. The
anchor is " hove short," and we are only waiting the signal to
" trip " and be off to Stamboul ; some say Naples, in order that
our presence there may encourage the disaffected, and reduce
the Philo-Russian King Bomba to a " quandary."

There is no news at all. Dear, except that the Russians
sustained another defeat at the hands of the French and
Turks at Eupatoria a few days since. Six guns were captured
with their tumbrils, and about 1 50 prisoners.

An Expedition is, also fitting out against Kaffa, but I fear it
is too late in the year to attempt Odessa and Nicolaieff, as we
thought would be likely a few days since.

I merely write to let you know how I am, which is exceed-
ingly well. I wish I could hear of George.

October 21st, 1855.
George is come, quite well but dirty. Monday, 5 o'clock.
Goes home by mail.

TO HIS BROTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
29th Oct., 1855.

I suppose you are safe and comfortable at home by this
time, having got over the difficulties and miseries of your sea
voyage.

I heard last night that the Government is in want of one or
two small steam tanks for watering ships at Constantinople.
They should be vessels of very light draught, good capacity
of tank, able to act as tugs upon necessity, with funnels or
masts that will fold down so as to pass them under a bridge
seven or eight feet from the water. Their beam should not

384 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1855 be more than ten or eleven feet. Such are wanted, and some
time since a tender was made for one by a Scotch house ; the
Admiralty said they did not want it, but I know they do. So
pray knock up a ship-shape design for one, and send it in a
week after you get this, to the Admiralty, Whitehall. Do not
say who was your authority. This little bit of private infor-
mation is not in Grace's line, and I am not of course able to
tell him of it.

I hope you will be able to settle those small accounts for
me, I am in a dreadful state of perplexity about them. I am
at work at French, mathematics and Greek, besides my own
regular employment, so that my hands are full. My anxieties
prevent any enjoyment of life at all. However, if I can keep
afloat for another five years, I shall be free, and, for me,
rich!

The advertising medium is as favourite a medium nowadays
as the American table-talker. Here your wife sells herself to
you. No later than this morning in passing the slave bazaar,
a shining Nubian damsel with several orthodox cuts upon her
face, and otherwise smart-looking, besought me to buy her,
but being poor and bashful, I declined. Last year too, when
the Agamemnon was on the coast of Circassia, my friend, the
chaplain, went on shore with the interpreter, to see the lions.
The first persons he met were a father, and two pretty girls,
who offered themselves to the chaplain for £^0 apiece. My
friend, being a bachelor, retreated hastily towards the sea, and
escaped matrimony by taking to a boat. " Poor man ! " said
one of the brides-elect — " Poor man, I suppose he has no
money ! "

The weather is beautifully fine, quite a second summer. I
had. a pleasant walk yesterday in old Stamboul with the
correspondent of the Illustrated News. He set to sketching
all the surroundings, until a gathering crowd forced him to
leave off. I shall be glad to hear from you.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

8th Nov., 1855.
It is now four or five mails since I have heard from home. The
Fleet are coming down in a day or two, so that Pera will be
gay enough. It is a bad place. I was coming off from dining

FROM THE FLEET IN TfTE FTJfTIFS. 385

(about an hour ago, eight o'clock) with a friend, and, in
passing down a lonely street, a Greek seized my coat, and,
pushing his hand adroitly into my breast .pocket, asked for
" monish," but only abstracted my cigar case. I snatched it
from him, and struck him in the face. He yelled at me, and
pushed something sharp into my leg. The smart of the
puncture, for it was nothing more, made me very angry, and I
then struck him with all my force across the face with my
large blackthorn. The stick contains a ponderous rapier,
which disengaged itself in the scuffle, and the fellow made off.
I am afraid he was only some drunken scoundrel who hardly
knew what he was about, and I am now sorry I punished him
so severely. I was only scratched, and he will have a black
eye and a contused head for a fortnight. It was too early for
an " artistic " robbery. I never saw him till he spoke to me,
it was so dark, but my paper lantern, which dropped to the
ground, took fire, and showed me where to strike. The low
parts of Galata and Tophana, through which we have to pass
to get to the boats, are the haunts of thieves. Men are stabbed
and murdered nightly, but I trusted to a light and a good
stick to get off clear. These fellows rarely attack an officer,
knowing he is armed ; I suppose my civilian's dress attracted
him. It is quite a martyrdom going ashore to dine, and it is
a cruel kindness to ask us. The Turks and the French had a
battle royal the other night, and twenty-five men were
rendered hors de combat. Our men-o'wars'-men get into
nightly rows with the Greeks. Quite recently there was a
great fracas at the theatre ; some Greeks assaulted a French
sentry who was posted in the gallery, and a number of the
Queen's men, zealous for order, attacked the Greeks and
thoroughly thrashed them ; to the consternation of the house.

There is no news of any sort ; the operations of the war are
over, and every one speculating upon what is to be the
result.

I have not heard yet whether George has arrived at home
safely or not, but suppose he must have done so. Will you
tell Jenner when you meet him that I sat opposite Miss

B at dinner to-day. She is a forward, half-mad, young

lady I think, and was flirting furiously with a commissariat
exquisite (faugh). She was challenging him to a wa,lking
match, and talking familiarly of smoking, etc., etc. Surely
English people do not come out well abroad. They so
frequently give the impression of being " on the spree," as
schoolboys say instead of appearing as sensible travellers,

386 FRnM THR fLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

desirous of seeing the world, and accommodating themselves
to circumstances as they occur.

I am now moved from the ward-room into a little cabin on
deck, only just big enough to turn round in. I am mnch
cramped for room, and when we get to sea shall be put to
great shifts to stow away my loose gear.

Pray tell Carry and Harriet Stothert that I owe them each
a letter, and will certainly write when I have anything worth
while to tell them. My occupations are very monotonous
now. Reading in the morning, then a sharp walk, home to
dinner at six, a little reading after and then bed ; the same day
after day except Sundays.

I have made the acquaintance of a Mr. Campbell, the
acting chaplain to the Embassy here. He is the incumbent
of New Swindon, and is coming out again to the Crimea as
chaplain.

I see my friend Hasnvard, who was at Balaklava, has also
had a living given to him by the Lord Chancellor. He is the
very best man I know. He also is coming out again,

Please give my kindest love to all. I hope my father has
good pheasant shooting. Kindest love to him.

TO HIS BROTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

Nov. nth, 1855.

I am given to understand from a letter from home to-day
Mr. Garrard is not over well pleased with the reception I did
not give him in the Crimea. Will you set him right here ?
You doubtless recollect how it was that I did not get your
note for two days. It was blowing a heavy gale of wind. Will
you also tell Mr. Garrard that the paymaster of the Rodney
expected both you and him back the day he met you, and was
quite vexed that you, neither of you, went. Had I known you
were on the way I should have been on the look-out for you, but
as I did not, of course it was not likely that I should be found
on the " sad sea shore " waiting for what might wash up.

The Fleet is coming down here or going on to Malta,
and it is quite time, for the weather has become desperately
bad. It is cold, wet and stormy, and I sit in my cabin with my
feet like ice. What I shall do in the winter it puzzles me to
conjecture.

There is no news excepting that almost every night some
Englishman is robbed, stabbed, or murdered by the rascally

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 387

Greeks who frequent the low parts of Galata and Tophana,
near the sea. I got into a fracas the other night, but, thanks
to my sword-stick, escaped with a slight scratch.

The Armenians seem likely to give us some trouble. There
is an American letter of marque here waiting, it is said for the
breaking out of war, in order that she may pick up something.
The Turks very properly lay an embargo upon her, and
prevent her leaving the port until her mission has been
properly explained.

Did you know Campbell, the clergyman at New Swindon ?
He is the acting chaplain out here, and is going home in a
month, and then returns (if he gets the bishop's permission) as
an Army chaplain in the Crimea. I have made his acquaint-
ance ; he is an exceedingly nice fellow. I hope to hear from
you soon.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

November nth, 1855.
I was very glad to receive a letter from you at last, after so
long a silence, for I was beginning to fear something had gone
wrong. I did not know Carry had been seriously ill, but the
news that she has recovered obviates all necessity for asking
particulars. You seem to have been misinformed about some
things. I was not cruising about for two days buying sheep
for the Queen. That is not my office nor duty. I have not
slept out of the Queen for a single night (except on one occa-
sion, when detained on the Rodney by stress of weather). Very
often I go to buy sheep for our mess, and all kinds of pro-
vender. We have no butchers' shops in the Black Sea, and,
consequently, stock must be laid in when opportunity occurs.
As one of the Mess Committee, it frequently falls to my lot to
go foraging, together with others. It is the custom of the
Service, and well understood, and it is nothing to me what
Mr. G. thinks of our customs, and can be nothing to Mr. G.
what our customs may be. He can send his servant to buy
his legs of mutton ; we have to go ourselves and buy stock of
poultry, sheep, pigs, and all kinds of provisions, where we can.
The Government do not provide us with a table, as the mer-
chant people do their officers. The gun-room mess have also
their own committee, as we have. The purser contracts occa-
sionally for the ship's company ; but they live chiefly on salt beef
and pork. However, will you tell Mr. G. how I was situated,

25*

388 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

and beg him to believe that, had I known he was coming, he
should have had all I could have given him and welcome. I
wish him also to know that the paymaster of the Rodney,
whom he met, had provided beds and expected him on board
that night, and was rather offended that neither G. nor he
came nor sent any message to him. I had several friends
on board the Rodney then in Kazatch Bay and close to
shore, and when they heard that my brother and Mr. G. were
knocking about, they could not do too much for them, and
v^ere disappointed that no notice was taken of it. The duties
of hospitality are widely exercised amongst us, and just now
at a far higher cost than in England. All we buy is at famine
prices. A fowl you would not eat at home, and only hunger
obliges a man to gnaw out here, costs three shillings ; a sheep
weighing about forty pounds of bad meat, and often only skin,
one pound six shillings ; a turkey, ten shillings ; flour, in
barrel, at the rate of sixpence per pound, and so on. This,
with our poor pay and large income tax, and no allowance in
the world, as the Army men all have, keeps us very low in
pocket. I have suffered no inconvenience from my slight
wound. Four other people were attacked the same night.
An English officer, in one case, drew his sword, and cut down
the Greek on the spot. A few nights ago, just about dusk, I
was speaking to a merchant in his store at Galata, and a crowd
rushed by. "What is the matter?" he said to a Greek. " Only
an Englishman," was the reply, laughingly given, with a sig-
nificant gesture. Sure enough we found next day they had
stabbed another officer in the open street. I wish the French
had the police. The Greeks are all the friends of Russia ; so
are the Armenians here to a man. I was to have taken the
service at the Embassy this evening, but the weather is so bad
there is no getting ashore. Kindest love to all.

P.S. — The Admiral has now got a large house on shore, and
never comes here, except now and then on Sunday. I think
he is a Presbyterian. Mrs. Grey is, I believe, six feet high.
She is never at home ; I have called twice. I hope you have
put my name down again at Worcester College. I think I can
take ray M.A. out here, when I have kept my terms.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

26th November, 1855.
I have but a few moments to spare. Your letters have just

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 389

arrived, owing to the mail steamer having been aground at
Tenedos. In the way of books, the most absurd things are
done by the good people at home. When I was at Therapia
last year, I opened a box sent out for the use of the sick.
Some " Chambers' Journals " were valuable ; the rest was a
medley of theological reviews, works on the Millenium, and
fanciful interpretations of prophecy, and, in fact, it seemed that
what people did not want at home they sent out to us, and
called it charity. I do not, of course, apply this to your
intended present, but merely to show you what queer ideas
people have about things. I see Mortimer Adye is a brevet-
major; that honorary rank will give him two shillings and
sixpence a day extra pay. I wish John could get the substan-
tive rank of lieutenant-colonel, for he will be only a captain of
artillery when he returns home, as far as pay goes, his brevet
rank giving him no pay nor perquisites beyond two shillings
and sixpence a day. He has gone to Malta.

You want a description of some dinner I went to. I forget
which it was. I dined with the great English banker here, if
you mean that. He has a beautiful country house on the
banks of the Bosphorus, and another in town ; but he lives in
purely English style, and you would not know but that you
were at home, except the furniture is richer and more Oriental,
and the crowds of foreign and moustachioed servants show the
custom of the East. All his family have been educated at
home. One of his sons was at school with Arthur Earle. He
is a regular John Bull himself, and is so particular that his
children should be English too, that he will not allow the
introduction of a single habit or practice in his family that is
not English. They are very rich. The old man makes now
about £\o,QQO a year. He takes nearly all the Government
contracts for all parts of the world ; and as soon as his eldest
son is " married an a'," he goes home.

When we return I know not. I am hard at work at French
and figures, and find no great difficulty in either, except that
as soon as I learn I promptly forget ! This is the only diffi-
culty people have in learning late in life.* If ever I have a
child, he shall begin to learn as soon as he can speak. It is
all nonsense saying children are ever too young.

I have, in addition to my other work, the weekly, or rather
daily, duty of the Embassy, and one service there on Sundays.
This will only be for ten days, however. I preached there

* The writer's age at this time was under thirty.

390 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

yesterday morning, and read prayers in the afternoon. There
is bad accommodation, only two small rooms for the Church
of England. All other nations have their chapels, but we
have never rebuilt ours since it was burned down. I see the
S.P.G. are going to send out two other clergymen here, and to
build a church. The Ambassador will oppose this with all his
might, I know.

There is no news here. The Fleet are going to all sorts of
places for the winter, and the Army are busy making roads.
A rumour of an attack has been rife for some time, but it has
come to nothing. I hear now and then from some of my
military friends, but those of the Navy are mostly nearer
England than Russia.

A IRW(G!FI SKirCffif

EWINC THE POSITION Of THt VISSELS SUNK IH SEVASTOPOL HAfiBOUB,
THE BOOMS AND BRIDGE OF BOATS.

NOTt
W-^i/^' .^Sr^i, Uf bti,,^ .-f, ikfH^ ,i/!^, -a^fi, iluzri/iy th^ jam., fal,

" \dfft, srBi.'i, to M* t KrtA. iiM' puihji t^f kfiBrn. oj 'ioiktna of th^m '1 ' tsi'til'^
/>r S>upj wm Junk ritk m-trj iAjxj St bfSU-^.ii'^Jtf Rujmrtj prnr^fing
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iXc Seath ChtUJtvil irtheh*/t

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tA^ irui^jt fzfui

irij-f vry armua* it yt tut ami' a&adf Atm fthe-riM^ a^li <A<

S/ufij tc be ^iiH sf Trtepj, due were ^r«va7ttg^ ty Prince ..Jfaiti.tcol'f

391

CHAPTER XXXII.

Prudence had dictated preparations for the winter. 1855
The French were making and mending roads, and the
important bridge between the Karabelnaya and the
western part of the town, which had been nearly
destroyed, they had taken upon themselves to repair.
These roads, upon which the Allies had now spent
much time and labour, proved of great value to the
Russians after the makers of them had left the Crimea.
At Kamiesh a town was springing up, where wooden
wharfs, hotels, and streets with French names, proved
attractive. There, too, were women from Paris
and Marseilles, gaily presiding in the shops and
restaurants.

And while the Chersonese was undergoing survey,
and communications were being improved, our poor
Turkish Ally in Asia was enduring the results of
being ignored, and the humiliation of defeat. Colonel
Williams had gone out to Kars as Commissioner from
the British Government to the Turkish Army. The
Turks trusted him ; and, having succeeded in ridding
the service of many corrupt officers and practices, to
increase his power, he was made general.

Omar Pasha, Austrian though he was by birth, was,
in sympathy and habit, Osmanli, and in July he had
earnestly wanted to go to the aid of these hard-pressed
Turks. The exigencies of the campaign had pre-
vented the withdrawal of his Army from the Crimea,
and it was not until too late to relieve Kars that he
departed. Pelissier was indifferent ; the French had

392 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1855 nothing to gain in this matter ; besides, their military-
ambition had been satisfied, as well it might be, with
the triumph of the Malakoff capture ; and indeed
they had no genuine desire for any further offensive
operations.

Kars was situated in the distant south-east corner
of the Black Sea, three weeks' march from Trebizonde,
and here the ill-starred Turkish garrison was enduring
every phase of the most tragic siege. The over-
whelming numbers of the enemy had been long kept
at bay, even at the point of the bayonet. But the
investment of the Russians, who had a great Army
available, grew closer ; the garrison believed Omar
Pasha and Selim Pasha were both coming to their
succour ; and, to add to their pathetic patience, they
trusted to the frequent rumours of speedy relief.
" Sevastopol has fallen! Omar Pasha, with 40,000 men
are already near Batoumf" "Kismet!" said the
hungry, ragged Believer, as he watched the deadly
finger of disease and famine-bred fever touch his
children, and his fellows, on every side. " Allah permits
it. There is but one Allah ! " As the trial becomes
acute, trust waxes stronger ; verily it would seem as if
these brave Osmanli thought misery was an oppor-
tunity to test their faith, for which they ought to be
thankful. It never occurred to them to question their
God. True, they cursed their Pashas ; but Allah,
never.

Famine and disease proved more invincible foes
than even the Russians ; cholera, too, decimated the
troops and the inhabitants of the town. The English-
men who had voluntarily come here and shared all the
horrors of the siege, called the unhelped condition to
which the garrison was reduced, by another name,
less vague and more to the point — as is the way of
the race.

The resistance continued ; the desperation of the
garrison and their sufferings culminated on the 29th

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 393

September. They had held out beyond all human 1855
reckoning, but, as General Williams and his heroic
staff had secret information that no relief was at
hand, the attack on that day brought about the
surrender, for he had no cavalry, so could not break
through the enemy's lines, but, so heroic was the
defence, " the Turks proved themselves worthy
of the admiration of Europe, and established an
undoubted claim to be placed among the most
distinguished of its troops." * The Russian Com-
mander, General Mouravieff, interrupted his military
secretary while penning the first article of the surrender,
with : "There, write that, in admiration of the noble and
devoted courage displayed by the army of Kars, the
officers shall be allowed to retain their swords as a
mark of honour and respect."

Surely at Kars the Turk wiped out all the stain
which imputation had left on his military renown.
His sorely-tried faith in destiny ; his loyalty to the
Sultan ; his uncomplaining endurance under the most
terrible and increasing trials, were the wonder of the
civilized world. Bitter was it to these Osmanli to
have to give in at the end ; bitter to Williams and his
devoted band ; and when posterity would conjure a
picture of glorious heroism, an uplifting memory, it
well may be — " the wan faces, the spectral forms, gaunt,
famine-stricken, and hollow-eyed, doggedly carrying
out the behests of the tameless defender of Kars." f

The campaign in Asia resulted in great loss to the
Turks ; it included 8,000 prisoners, 30 cannon, and
30,000 muskets at Kars alone.

In November, the Russian forces were an army in
the field, and Pdlissier, in half expectation of an attack
before winter, was concentrating towards the Tchernaya
and Baidar, but the anticipated attack did not take
place.

* Dr. Sandwith,
t Whyte Melville.

394 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

185s It was now an open secret that General Simpson
wished to retire ; and on the loth instant, his resigna-
tion was made public. A few days previously, Sir
Colin Campbell had left the Crimea, as he was
aware that Lord Panmure had appointed Sir William
Codrington to be Commander-in-Chief. Skilful soldier
as Sir William had proved himself to be, the veteran
felt the indignity of being expected to serve under his
junior, who had never been in action till the battle
of the Alma. Perhaps the hero of many fights may
have been the more justly indignant as the victory
there was due, in a great measure, to himself.
His fitness for the responsible position had been
discussed by the Government, who felt dubious —
perhaps on account of his Scotch tongue — about his
ability to communicate freely with our French Allies.
No inquiry on this point was made, but afterwards it
became known to Lord Panmure and his colleagues,
that Sir Colin Campbell's mother was a French
woman ! About this time Lord George Paget (doubt-
less expressing the general idea among those competent
to give an opinion) wrote : "What an ill-used man is
old Colin Campbell." He left his Highland Division
in comfort for the winter, camped and hutted on new
ground near Kamara. He returned the following
year as Lieutenant-General, to take command of a
Corps d'Arm^e under Codrington, but there was diffi-
culty about organizing, and he only remained a month.
But Fate had a greater task waiting for him in
another land, where his volcanic energy had opportunity
enough ; and his military ardour a sphere which a lesser
soul would not have envied.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

3rd December, 1855.
I have just time to scribble you a few lines before I go
ashore to see my friend Campbell, the acting Embassy

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 395

Chaplain, off to England. He is an excellent good fellow,
and a man of considerable ability. 1 daresay you recollect
him as a popular preacher at Bristol (Redcliffe Church) many
years ago.

There is no news here except that we are all very indignant
at the loss of Kars. I cannot think how it is you people
at home are so wrapped up in Omar Pasha. He is a selfish
wretch ; jealous' to a degree ; sensual in the extreme ; an
apostate in religion ; a renegade from his country ; his suc-
cesses have been achieved by others, while he " has entered
into their labours." This is the man, who, tired of Crimean
subordination, asks for a wider field ; is sent to relieve the
devoted Kars ; does not go near the place, and does not
intend to. This man must " explode " before long, in spite
of the brilliant reputation he has obtained in Europe. Here,
not a boatman on the Bosphorus, does not understand the
merits of the case, and abuses Omar Pasha and all the
Pashas to his heart's content. We have gained by the loss.
Our fame had been a little clouded by the affairs in the
Crimea, and the preponderance of the French power in the
East ; but the noble defence of Kars has cleared the horizon
for us once more, and the English name gleams out again
with all its ancient radiance. The Russians, too, behaved
very nobly in the matter. They have in that atoned for
Hango. Have you seen Geneste's letter? He told me all
about it, as mentioned to you in one of my letters.

The Royal Albert has come to grief near Athens. How-
ever, the state of things is not so bad as report would make
it. I see a good deal of my friend Eber, who is here as
Times correspondent. I badger him about the Times
tremendously, for I think it a false, lying paper, but of the
greatest ability. They know well the state of affairs with
respect to Omar Pasha ; and they are just darkly hinting at
it so as to wake up the public gently. Then they will speak
out and take great credit to themselves.

Blackeston, the Embassy Chaplain, has returned. Mr.

S 's letter to the S.P.G. was very unfair, and showed

ignorance of what he was writing about. Among other things,
he did not know that a circular was printed and sent to all
the merchant ships, inviting all to church on board the Queen.
I must not stay longer. Kindest love.

396 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

December Sth, 1855.

At the present time I am taking the Embassy work for the
chaplain, who is absent on duty. There is a great deal to do
in the way of funerals, three or four a day, but not much
besides. As I cannot be " got at " all day, I have appointed
certain fixed hours for the services, at which times I am
always present, wet or dry. So completely has the habit of
the East got hold of our English people that this simple
arrangement is carried out with the greatest difiSculty ; and
it is only by insisting upon it that I can get it done. The
cholera is very bad, more especially among English sailors,
whose habits of intemperance are fearful. I have a scheme
on foot to set up a caf6 or club house for the Navy, where
men can get food, and newspapers to read, at a fair price.
My scheme, however, requires a great deal of organization,
and a considerable amount of support from the local
authorities to make it pay, so that I hardly know whether I
shall ever be able to induce a sufiScient number of influential
persons to take it up. Such an institution is fearfully
wanted. I propose to make it a subscription affair, and that
no man is admitted who does not pay up. The great
point will be to provide an efficient committee from among
the Blue-jackets, and a strong-minded and strong-handed
superintendent. I should propose also a library as a distinct
department, and I think this would add to the excellence of
the whole arrangement. At the present time every man's
energies are taken up by a "sailors' home" for distressed
seamen, so that there is little room for anything else. Mrs.
Grey has promised to help me. My hands are full of
occupation. My own work takes up a great part of my
time, and the extra duty I now have occupies all my leisure.
I am not afraid of being robbed again. The state of things
is fearful here, but I rarely go out. Kindest love to all.

P.S. — We shall not be home for six months.

TO HIS BROTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

6th December, 1855.
I am grinding away at figures, slow work enough, but, 1
hope, profitable.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 397

There is no news except that it is pretty certain Kars is
taken. Omar Pasha, secure of his popularity, drinks more
than ever, and is humbugging about with two Circassian
women he has bought, instead of pressing on against the
Russians. He will get into great trouble. I fear all our brave
fellows there have been put to the sword. There is a talk
of peace, with what probability God alone knows. I trust it
is true.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

December loth, 1855.

I believe it is now certain that Kars has surrendered.
This is at least better than the report we heard some time
since, viz. : that the Russians had taken it and put all the
garrison to the sword. The gallant Williams has done his
utmost ; all he could for honour and duty ; and it is not his
fault if reinforcements and provisions did not arrive.

Of course, by this time you have heard of the death of poor
Bruat, who expired of cholera on his passage to Marseilles.
To-morrow a funeral service is to be performed for the repose
of his soul, at the French chapel here.

The sickness is diminishing, although I fear the present
wet weather will produce a fresh accession of cholera cases.
For a whole fortnight it has been nothing but rain, rain,
rain. You cannot conceive what a sea of mud pervades
every street and every house in this place.

When we go home it is quite impossible to say ; certainly,
you will not see me on Christmas day.

The Embassy chaplain has not yet returned, and I fear has
been taken ill during his stay in the Crimea. Yesterday
morning no service was performed in the chapel ; but in the
afternoon I was there. The most burdensome part of the
duty is the burial services. They keep me waiting sometimes
a whole hour in the " grand champ," a corner of which is
allotted to the English. It is a long way out of Pera, and I
must be. there, wet or dry, so I often get quite wet through
before the service is over. The people are so careless that
rarely anybody attends but Greek or Armenian grafve-
diggers. Once I read in modem Greek, but it turned out
only one Greek was present, and he did not understand
Greek, but only the patois spoken in Stamboul ; and I suspect
my pronunciation was very foreign into the bargain, so I have
relapsed into English again as a " tongue equally not under-

398 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

standed of the people." I cannot compass the Turkish yet.
I hope you are all well. I expect a letter from you shortly.
Kindest love to my mother and to all.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

December 17th, 1855.

The mails have not arrived for a week in consequence of
the French steamer having broken down, so that I do not
know what letters there are for me, or what news from home.

The news of the surrender of Kars is confirmed, but it was
surrendered, not stormed, so that the horrors of a storming
have been spared us. Omar Pasha will lose his reputation
soon, or I am vastly mistaken. He is now wasting his time
with two Circassian women he has added to his harem ;
he never intended to go near Kars, or else why did he not go
to Trebizond and thence to Batoum, and so keep the Army of
Mouravieff in check ?

The weather has become exceedingly cold, all the hills are
covered with snow ; and we have had nothing but snow, sleet,
wind and rain for the last week. To-day however the sun is
shining brightly. The Admiral has gone on a visit to the
Crimea ; when he returns we do not know ; it is not the very
nicest time of the year for touring.

The mail has just arrived, and brought word that one mail
is missing altogether, and no one knows what has become of
it. I hope no accident has happened. A good many of my
clerical friends have come down from the Crimea with their
various brigades. This will make very pleasant society for
me. You would laugh to see the bearded animals they all
are. Only one regiment of cavalry is left behind in the
Crimea, as an escort to the Commander-in-Chief One of my
friends is in it, and he had made up his mind to a pleasant
time at Ismid, on the shores of the Marmora, where he had
invited me to visit him for a month's quail and partridge
shooting !

I hope you are all looking forward to a pleasant Christmas.
How I wish I were with you !

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

December 24th, 1855.
You will have heard by this time of the fall of Kars.
Some blame Omar Pasha, some General Vivian, some Lord

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 399

Stratford. One story declares Lord Stratford insisted upon
the Turkish contingent being sent to Kars, and that General
Vivian declined to go. Another asserts that General Vivian
wished to go, and Lord Stratford refused assent. No one
here knows the exact truth. The fall has made a weird
impression on people's minds. If Omar Pasha had wished to
relieve it no doubt he could well have done so, but he is a
great humbug. Admiral Lyons, General Pdlissier, and
General De La Marmora are going to-day to Marseilles, by
the Cuiador, to a grand consultation at Paris upon the war.
I think peace will be made. Kindest love to all.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

31st December, 1855.

I was very glad to have your letter yesterday, and wish you
many a happy Christmas, and I hope to enjoy some of them
with you. It had quite escaped my memory that my name
was re-entered at AA'^orcester College. How it is I do not
know, except that my attention is now so much occupied, and
my memory of late fails most lamentably. I want a change
of climate, for, although perfectly well, I had a severe shake
last year in the Crimea which I have never fairly got over.
Now we are here I am incessantly engaged with something or
other, French, Greek, mathematics, sermons ; and callers all
day long. People think a clergyman has nothing to do but
to receive civilities. Of course I cannot but be grateful for
all this.

It is quite time I destroy all letters, or nearly all as soon as
answered, for in the confined space of 6ft. by 4 I have no room
to store them, but events of consequence I regularly enter.
With the writings of Russell and Wood on the war (in the
scenes of most of which I have been a partaker), no blank,
however, can occur of the events of the last two years.

Captain Keppel goes home to-day to take charge of a
flotilla of gunboats for next year in the Baltic. He is a good
officer and will be of great use.

My friend Campbell goes home to-morrow, and Blackeston

returns here. Mr. S knows little of Constantinople, and

should have been more discreet. I have often seen the
quotation from Home, and admire it very much. Although
an obvious truism, still it is not always remembered.

People now build steamers and send them out on specula-

400 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

tion ; these are quickly sold at enormous prices. It is really
the only way to make money here.

I am still grinding away at Algebra and French, and hope
to be at home by April or May, when I can seclude myself
for a few months under a good tutor and complete my studies.
The standard has been raised of late, as you doubtless know ;
so much the worse for me ! Do not trouble yourself more
about Tomkins. I have made a great fool of myself there as
I have often done before. For the rest of my life I will trust
nobody, not even myself. My head aches so with a cold,
that I am going to bed. Kindest love to all.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

January 7th, 1856.

The weather is so bitterly cold that it seriously interferes
with all sedentary occupation. My cabin is under the poop,
with a gun port, and the gun sticking through it prevents the
port properly shutting. Every joint in the bulkhead lets in
the cold wintry winds. I write and read wrapped up in
overcoats, but all will not do, I am generally absolutely
benumbed with cold. However, in two months the climate
will have become more genial. As to reading or writing
in the ward-room, with 20 roaring fellows about, it is
impossible.

The Ambassador gave a grand ball on New Year's Day, to
which I was invited, but did not go.

My friend the acting chaplain of the Embassy has returned
to England, to my regret.

You do not tell me how Dick Eykyn is. I want very much
to know. Please thank my mother for her kind letter. I am
literally too cold to write more to-day. Tell her I went to a
grand wedding on Saturday, and married the couple. The
bridegroom is a merchant with whom I came out two years
ago. The bride is a Yorkshire girl of the name of Scarth.
The husband told me that he thinks if the war lasted five
years more he should retire at the age of 35 on a handsomer
fortune than his wildest dreams ever pictured to him. Just
fancy the money that is being made out here.

40I

CHAPTER XXXIII.

We have now arrived at a period when the subjects of 1856
our chaplain's letters no longer chiefly concern the
belligerents or their plans, and, in supplementing the
correspondence, it becomes necessary to assume a more
biographical r61e.

In the Crimea Kelson Stothert had been deprived of
intellectual intercourse ; there, intellect, for its own
sake, was at a discount. When he had chanced to
meet travellers, or others of similar tastes to his own,
they gladly fraternized with him, for his manner was
very attractive. He had every qualification to make
him popular ; refined, genial, kind-hearted and quick
of apprehension ; he possessed already original im-
pressions of a large experience, and had the power of
utilizing them in conversation. He was always earnest,
and particularly earnest in wishing for access to books,
but in the East reading was denied him for lack of
literature ; and there he studied men and motive, and
grew keenly observant. This faculty stood him in
good stead later, when he became a student of books as
well as humanity.

But now he was sick of warfare ; it had undermined
his health ; and the results of the hardships he had
encountered had made him weak and susceptible — these
results were to last his lifetime ! He was ill and de-
pressed, but, curiously enough, the priest in his
complex nature becoming dominant, we find him
suddenly almost enthusiastic about a project for erecting

402 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1856 the first Christian church in Turkey. With this im-
pelling incentive to action, though backed by very
inadequate physical strength, he set about his self-
imposed task with his usual determination and zeal.
The scene of his newly-found ambition was four miles
from " the dirt, the turmoil, and discomfort of Pera,"
where his sympathies had been roused for the little
flock there who had been spiritually starved. It was
an unimportant matter to him that the members of this
settlement were of all creeds, if, by any means, he could
win them for the Church of Christ. Needing change
and rest himself, he thought only of his desire to
get them a building wherein to worship ; and the
speedy and practical way he developed his scheme,
proved the fervency of his desire, and his skill as an
organizer.

As will be seen he still interpolated his letters now
and again with whatever news he could gather about
the Army, or the- likelihood of the continuance of
hostilities, though there was little of an exciting
nature for him to relate. Doubtless after the horrors
of the campaign, entailing the repugnant duties in-
separable from war, he found the building of a little
church at Ortaquoi a congenial and blessed interest,
into which he could put all his heart and soul without
any misgivings.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
14th January.

It is quite uncertain whether the- letters will be sent away
to-day, the weather is so boisterous.

I have just come off the shore at some risk. I remained
last night at a village called Ortaquoi, about four miles from
here, where there are 80 English people living. My friend
Campbell found them out, and since he left, at the Embassy
chaplain's request I have given them a service every Sunday
afternoon, and have walked that way during the week and

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 403

visited most of them. They are going at some time or 1856
another to raise a church of stone, but, in consequence of
my earnest petition, they have agreed now to erect a temporary
structure of a decent and orderly kind, which will serve for
six or seven years until money be collected for a better one.
Our church like all the houses here will be of wood. The
plans and estimates have been prepared, and it will cost ;^400.
An architect employed by the Government has taken the
matter in hand for me, and, besides his time, has given a
handsome sum. I have called on a dozen people about it, and
have got ;^200 paid into the treasurer's hands ; an old
merchant here himself put down ;^5o, so that, if I can collect
;£'ioo from home, by God's blessing I shall be able to say the
first English church in Turkey was partly of my doing. Do
try what you can accomplish for me. If we get ;^300 the
church will be begun at once. I see no difficulty in the
matter. The people there are in a very bad state, as all the
English are, but on account chiefly of great neglect. I
preached them a very stern sermon last night, and afterwards
two of the most influential men there, and two of the worst,
came to talk over matters, and for once in their (late) lives
went to bed on Sunday night sober. Campbell gave the
service a start, but only officiated twice before he left. They
have made up their minds to have a regular clergyman, to
whom they will give a house and ;£^200 a year, if the S.P.G.
will give another ;^ioo. This is an excellent offer, and to a
scholar the opportunity of doing a great deal of good, and of
learning modern and Oriental languages, would be invaluable.
Were I a disengaged man I would like nothing better for four
or five years. I do not care how much money you can collect
for me, ;£^400 will cover the grand expenses, then comes
furniture, communion plate and a lending library, and any
surplus will be laid aside for payment of a minister. The
greater number of the people are Dissenters, but they are
very civil to me all the same, and regularly come to church.
Two Armenians, working men too, come to the service, and
have given me £2 each towards the plan. Is not this odd ?
The people have imported a schoolmaster and his wife, two
very nice people, with whom I stayed last night. I hope that
before we go, the church will be built and opened. What
money you collect please send me in B. of E. notes ; they are
current here.

26^

404 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

i6th January, 1856.

I am still in the agonies of cold and hardly able to hold
my pen. The weather however is fine, but, in consequence
of the alternate snows and thaws, it is next to impossible
to take advantage of outdoor exercise and so warm
ourselves.

I have written to Mr. East and Mr. Scarth about our
little church at Ortaquoi, and if I cannot succeed in getting
£200 from home, as far as I am concerned the affair must be
abandoned, as I could not counsel the commencement of such
an undertaking without the money down. I have not written
to the S.P.G. for money, for we shall be obliged to come upon
them by-and-bye for a clergyman. It will not be fair to ask
them now ; besides we ought to raise so small a sum as ;£^2CX3
by private benevolence. We have ;£^200 already. The church
will cost £AfX), and when built I have no doubt £\o or ;^50
will buy furniture for it of a simple kind. I really find so
much to do in these short days that I am living too fast when
night comes. The only resource is bed and "lots of
blankets," for with my daily studies, my sick visiting, and
then letter writing, my hands are full enough.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

2 1st January, 1856.
On Friday last we were all astounded by the news that the
Russian Cabinet had accepted Esterhazy's proposition. No
one really believes this, or rather I should say no one but
thinks that in April or May next we shall be at war again
just as much as we are now. The Emperor wants to recruit
his finances and reorganize his army. France is " hard up,"
and thinks she has done quite enough. We shall be the
only sufferers. We shall have doubtless to bear the burden
and heat of the day in that loan business, and have lost our
old prestige. France has covered herself with glory — claims
all — and has the sense to leave off just at the right moment,
for she knows well that in ten years we shall have a better
army than she has ; it is the character of our people to
develop our resources slowly but surely. Besides, every

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 405

soldier of ours is a picked man, surveyed, examined, measured,
catechised before enlistment. Theirs are driven to the army,
and the conscription seizes every man and boy capable of
bearing arms. What a difference !

I am fearing for our project at Ortaquoi. We have raised
£2Ap, but people are already getting lukewarm about it. I
hope " reinforcements " will come from England speedily.

The mails have not yet arrived ; they are very irregular
owing to one cause and another. Half our letters and papers
go to the Crimea, and it is a week or a fortnight before we
receive them again. I was at Ortaquoi last night. The
congregation increases I am happy to say, but our accom-
modation is bad. I have a " motley crew " who come to
church : Armenians, Roman Catholics, Baptists, Methodists,
High Church, Low Church, No Church. I suppose an ex-
plosion will one day take place, and so I am very cautious,
but pursue the even tenour of my way in all other respects.
People must be told the truth sometimes.

The weather is still wet, cold and wretched to the last
degree.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S Queen,

27th January, 1856.
Your letter was a great pleasure to me. It is quite true
that I do feel very acutely all that you say of my position
as chaplain in the Service. There is no sympathy of any kind
with our work. The best eight years of a man's life are wasted
when serving on board ship ; and the period of time he passes
there is a wearying, wearying, profitless business, to his own soul
at least, and oftentimes to the souls of others. He is not placed,
to begin with, in a position suitable to his character and
education. He is allowed an income barely sufficient to support
him ; and opportunities are all but denied him of performing
his duty. I, for one, would not remain another hour in the
Service but for two reasons : Some one must be there, and
having taken it up I do not like to leave ; I could not live upon
the stipend of £100 a year at home. Many of my brethren
have been brought up in a narrow way, and a hardship like this
would be no hardship to them, but only following out their
way of life. Such not being the case with me, it is no wrong
thing to feel it a very great difficulty. At sea there is a hope
of doing a little good sometimes, if not directly, yet indirectly,

4o6 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

as witness the happy additional employment I am now
engaged in among my countrymen and fellow Christians near
at hand. My place is to do what I can at all times, and in
any place, until I am called home to a church of my own.

We are lagging at Ortaquoi for want of funds. We have
raised little more than £zdp, and although people are very
anxious to begin, I strongly advise them not to attempt it until
they have another ;^ioo, and even then there will be a debt of
some amount, but which we must hope to liquidate by a public
appeal. My reasons for holding them back are chiefly these.
As the congregation will be a fluctuating one, the responsi-
bility of the debt must rest upon some one's shoulders, and it
would not be fair that trustees should have this thrust upon
them. Then an income for a clergyman of at least ;£^250
a year (and a house rent free) for three years certain, should
be secured, as well as a covenant to pay his passage out and
home. Unless this is done I have fairly told them I will
write to no Society for help, nor will I advise the Bishop of
Gibraltar to license the church. This income would do, for
the advantages of being in a place so wonderfully suited to a
' scholar and a linguist, are not to be overlooked. Besides, if
a clergyman wished to teach, an English college would pay
wonderfully well. However, no man ought to be driven to
teaching. There is to be a meeting of subscribers to-morrow
night, which I have promised to attend.

After all, peace looks likely ; still, people are very distrustful.
The weather is warmer and the days longer, so I am getting
on again once more with my little studies.

P.S. If you have collected any money for the church
building at Ortaquoi, pray send it out at once without waiting
for a large sum. We want instalments time after time to
help us on.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queeti,

27th January, 1856.
Mr. D's sentence is a very sad one. His commander was an
old messmate of mine in La Hague, and feels the affair most
painfully. To those unused to the sternness of military law,
the sentence is appalling, but it is absolutely necessary. The
ordinary rules and feelings which we are in the habit of acting
upon are no guide in a case of this sort, for the nature of
things is so essentially different. An act of cowardice is an

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 407

act of treason of the blackest nature, spreading its evil
example on all around. To feel a sensation of anxiety when
entering upon the terrific struggle for life and death is what
no man is free from, but the meanest boy in the navy would
scorn to show it as more than a passing feeling. This man
was the second in command, and threw himself on the deck at
the first fire, screaming with terror. What could be worse ?
It was a trifling " affair " after all. When we were in action
in that terrible "hellish" fire at the first bombardment of
Sevastopol, I went round the batteries and saw none, young
or old, who flinched at all. The very powder boys, children
of 1 3 years, were as full of frolic and fun as if at play. The
French, in a case like D's, would have taken his life before the
sun had set upon the day of his crime. He will not be
executed. The matter was kept very quiet ; few in the Fleet
knew of it at all until it got into the papers. You ask what
is a second master. The master is the officer who navigates
the ship ; * the captain being supposed to fight her. The
second master is the master's subaltern officer. In small
ships there is no master, the second master doing duty
as such.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

28th January, 1856.
Yesterday afternoon I went as usual to my congregation at
Ortaquoi, and a large number came to the room we use as a
church. On Friday evening last I presided at a meeting of the
subscribers towards our projected new structure. The design
was agreed upon, and I now relapse into the " parson of the
parish," for I declined to serve on the committee, as my time
would not permit. It was decided to build a stone church,
which will add another ;^ioo to the expense. We now.want a
little less than £600, but I am glad to say our treasurer has
;^300 already. This extra ;^30O must be got from England, for
we have drained the country here, and the great church at Pera
will absorb all the energies of the inhabitants. For this last
the Government have been applied to : a sum of £i,yx) has
been given to rebuilding the Embassy chapel. The Govern-
ment are asked to divert this towards the public purpose of a

* The navigator is a survival of the old sailing master, who really sailed the
ship which was sometimes commanded by a soldier in days when Macaulay said
"No sailor was a gentleman, and no gentleman was a sailor."

4o8 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

general church, and to allow the Embassy chaplain to take the
incumbency of it as rector, his present stipend being, as it
were, the endowment. The instructions of the Foreign Office
to the chaplain of the Embassy at the Ottoman Porte are to
extend his spiritual ministrations to all English Protestants
within his reach. This is the reason that I considered the

letter of Mr. S to the S.P.G. was so ill-judged. I fear

some disagreement will take place yet. Mr. S fairly

considers himself Bishop of the Bosphorus. I say so for this
reason : In writing to some of my clerical friends at Scutari

for subscriptions to our church, Mr. S objected, I am told,

to their subscribing, on the ground that the S.P.G. had taken
charge of the place. What the Society intends to do I do not
know, or what authority they have, over and above the
Embassy chaplain, whose duty I take at Ortaquoi ; but this
I know, that if a clergyman comes out here with his plans in
his pocket, and takes possession nolens volens of those good
folks who have been so heartily at work to get up a House of
God, they will simply become disgusted, and he may preach
to empty benches, for they are, almost without exception,
Dissenters, and must be " delicately played " or else they will
snap the line, and be off. It is very hard that a self-consequent
gentleman, whose occupation lies in Asia, and mine in Europe,
should interfere with poor me.

I do hope you are trying to get me some subscriptions for
the church ; and will send them out very soon, for I shall break
my heart if I do not preach in it before I die, or before I leave
the place.

There is a prevalent yarn that the Emperor of Russia is
poisoned, but no one believes it. Everything is very quiet here,
but the merchants, who are in a panic about their speculations;
I suppose a good many " smashes " will take place. The
French have secured a large amount of wharfage in case of
peace, and will have magnificent premises. We have not a
rood of land. Truly the French beat us hollow in everything
that can be gained by rapidity and foresight.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

February 4th, 1856.

I have been seriously unwell for the last ten days, and my

day's walk to Ortaquoi yesterday, as well as my services

here, have really taken the shine out of me ; I am but just out

of bed. I had intended to have written a long account of

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 409

a State party given by Lord Stratford, at which the Sultan
and all his Court, the great Pachas of the Empire, the Greek
and Armenian Patriarchs, the Naval and Military Authorities
of the Allied Forces, and — I were present. Such a sight
never was seen, and I had made up my mind to give the
children all the details of this brilliant and strangely singular
affair. But the doctor has come to me, and says I have got
jaundice and must go to bed. I do feel very queer, and
am as yellow as a guinea, so you must wait for the description
of the party.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

February 6th, 1856.

I am still too unwell to write you a long letter, with the
promised account of the State ball at which I spent two hours
last week. Since Sunday I have been confined to bed. I meet
with every kind attention from our three medical men, and hope
to be able to take my own service here on Sunday, although I
fear the Ortaquoi one must be left to itself The doctors say
my sickness has been caused by the climate and exposure to
weather, for I make a point of going oijt at all times and
seasons. I am glad the matter has come to a head, for I have
been sickly and ailing for a long time. There, you have had
enough of it !

I had a pleasant letter from my chatty, " clannish " friend,
Agnes Stothert, who has lately returned from Paris. She
lived in the next house to the Countess Montigo, the mother
of the present Empress, whose aunt was first cousin to W.
Stothert of Edinburgh. Miss Stothert saw some young rela-
tives every day, but never mustered courage to call until she
was leaving Paris. She gives me a warm invitation to visit
her in London, which I shall do if ever I go there again.

I have seen the account of the proposed increase of pay to
the Navy chaplains. It will come to nothing at present, .but the
declaration has been forced from the Admiralty in consequence
of some strong remonstrances on our part.

412 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

as you may suppose, in my studies this month, but expect to
pick it up again the next. It was exceedingly pleasant at
Therapia. The only companions I had were a Sardinian and a
lady. He, I thought, was a doctor, but I found he was the Com-
modore, and the lady his niece, and wife of the Sardinian
Admiral, who is at present away from here. They were
very pleasant people indeed. The weather was lovely all
the time, and I should have liked to have stayed a month
had it been possible. I have not been to Ortaquoi for nearly
three weeks, but hope to go to-morrow. Yesterday was a
general meeting for the Pera church, but I was too unwell to
be present, and have not heard the result.

We are anxiously expecting the news of peace. I suppose
there is no possible doubt about it. The French suffer a great
deal from sickness. They have 15,000 hors de combat, and
the Piedmontese have 900 on the Bosphorus in like condition.
Our Army is comparatively healthy. In the Naval hospital
at Therapia there are not thirty patients.

TO HIS BROTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

February 28th, 1856.

» * * « «

Have you seen in the papers the new scheme of payment
for naval chaplains ? It is a piece of double-distilled black-
guardism. They told us to wait and not take up the cudgels
ourselves, as they were going to do something for us, and this
is all they propose ! What can be expected from rascally
Whigs ?

413

CHAPTER XXXIV.

Russia having alienated the sympathy of Europe from 1856
herself, the continuation of the campaign had not found
favour. The French did not now wish to prolong it,
but had the Allies displayed a timorous policy at this
juncture, it would have been disastrous. Ready or
unready, Britain has generally been willing to fight out
her quarrels ; and the Army, in every way, was now
more fit for emergencies than it had been since 1853.
The Ministry took care to publish this fact ; and the
Powers were well aware that England would choose
rather to go on to the bitter end, with the Sultan as her
sole Ally, than accept an ignominious peace. But the
hour of the commonplace had arrived, when the
belligerents had to find that European influence was at
work. In Vienna diplomacy had been active, and the
Austrian Emperor had adroitly arranged a Conference
to take place in Paris, at which plenipotentiaries from
each of the Powers were to be present. The Tsar had
been urged by his Ministers and generals to agree to
the terms offered as a basis for negotiations ; and,
at length, had accepted the ultimatum.

Sir Edmund Lyons and General della Marmora
attended the Conference, and on the 29th of February
news was received in the Crimea that an armistice had
been agreed upon. To the majority this seemed an
assurance that they were presently

" To have a Godly peace concluded of."

414 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1856 Although averse to carrying on the war, the
Emperor of the French gave no sign of disloyalty to
the Alliance at the Conference ; indeed he held out
strenuously against Russian demands to share with
Turkey the naval possession of the Black Sea, as also
against other important items of Russian pretensions.

The peace treaty consisted of thirty-four articles, and
these were agreed upon, and the documents embodying
them signed, the day before the armistice concluded on
the 31st of March.

The following were some of the principal conditions
of the Treaty, dated 30th March, 1856 : —

"The territories conquered or occupied to be recipro-
cally evacuated. The Sublime Porte to be admitted to
participate in the advantages of the public law and
system of Europe, each of the other Powers engaging
to respect the independence and the territorial integrity
of the Ottoman Empire.

The Sultan engaging to ameliorate the condition of
his Christian subjects, but stipulating that the Powers
has not the right to interfere, either collectively or
separately, in his relations with his subjects, or in the
internal administration of his Empire.

The Black Sea to be neutralized, its waters and
ports opened to the mercantile Flags of all nations and
closed to Flags of war.

No military-maritime arsenal to be maintained on the
coast of the Black Sea by either the Tsar or the
Sultan.

Commercial transactions between the belligerent
Powers to be restored to the footing upon which they
were before the war."

Many of the articles related to boundaries and com-
missions to be subsequently arranged, but among the
diplomatists satisfaction appeared to be general ; and the
Emperor of the French said to the plenipotentiaries :

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 415

" You have accomplished a peace which is honourable 1856
to all parties without being humiliating to any Power."

That some of the articles have been since repudiated
by Russia cannot be denied. In this world of change
nothing appears to be more mutable than high-
sounding International Covenants. In Utopia reciprocal
recognition of treaties might perchance serve to bind
contracting Governments closer in purpose and
progress ; in Europe the international faith, necessary
to the keeping inviolate diplomatic agreements, is a
variable quantity, often subservient to selfish interests
insisted upon by force.

Europe had cause for rejoicing, and even Russia,
notwithstanding her half-million dead,

" Could scarce forbear to cheer."

Her resources were much exhausted, her brave
troops had endured terrible hardships ; they had had
so many dispiriting reverses, that, though she was
the Power that had precipitated the war, peace must
have been more welcome to her than to any of her foes.
But when it was proclaimed on the 2nd of April in the
Crimea by salute of loi guns by the English field
batteries, by the batteries of the French and
Sardinians, and by the ships all dressed with flags in
Balaklava, Kamiesh and Kazatch, "not a gun was
fired, nor a flag displayed by the Russians on the
northern side of Sevastopol." The belligerents were
free to return to their own countries ; indeed it was
incumbent upon them by the terms of the treaty to
withdraw from the scene of conflict. Peace was pro-
claimed the beginning of May, when Lord Palmerston,
in the House of Commons, proposed a vote of thanks
to the Army and Navy for their services.

Meanwhile the building of the church at Ortaquoi is
being pushed forward, and the letters tell of the success
which crowned the efforts of its founder.

4i6 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

H.M.S. Queen,

March 6th, 1856.

I cannot see what you are dissatisfied with in Eber's letter ;
it is not quite accurate, but sufficiently so ; and better still, he
has not brought me prominently forward. He threatened to
" puff riie up to a Bishopric," as he said, and I was afraid he
would say something which would render me obnoxious, so I
gave him a kind of memorandum.

I think you take exception to the word " chapel." Do you
know what a chapel is ? It is not a place of worship for
Dissenters ; that is a " meeting-house," which ought never to
be called a chapel, although it is often ; a chapel is a small
church attached to another church. A chapel is a church, but
a church is not always a chapel. Our place of worship at
Ortaquoi may be called either a church or chapel, as you
please. It is a church because it is of the Episcopalian order ;
it is a chapel because it is small in size.

I shall be very glad to get home. This climate does not at
all suit me. I cannot entirely shake off liver attacks, and I
have a return every other day. However, I am not ill now,
only it will probably have some chronic effect. After that
fever in the Crimea I ought to have gone home for a month or
two, as all the Army officers did. This would have set me up.
I cannot now either, unless I leave the Service, or, by interest,
you can get me appointed to a ship at home. Have you seen
Sir Charles Wood's new scheme for chaplains in the Navy ?
After all his palaver in the House about it, the matter becomes
sheer hypocrisy. Love to all.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

March loth, 1856.
What an extraordinary change in the weather since I wrote
last ! Then the air was mild and beautiful, now it is snowing
heavily and blowing half a gale of wind. The hills are covered
to some depth, and the ropes of the ships are stiff with
ice. All is midwinter here. Such constant changes of tem-
perature are the causes of the most deadly sickness. Liver
complaints, typhus and cholera occupy the first place in this
horrible list. The French and Sardinians are suffering very

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 417

much from typhus. Several medical men are ill and three of
the chief doctors have died. Many of the casualties among
the French result from want of proper food and clothing. It
is said that this is owing to peculation on the part of the
superior officers. Who knows ?

Everything seems tending to peace. The Fleet leaves
Malta to-day, and troops are still coming from there. They
find great difficulty in feeding them at that place,, the King of
Sicily having forbidden the exportation of cattle, so that all
has to be fetched from Genoa. We ought to "pitch into"
their Majesties of Sicily and Naples, and give their kingdoms
to Sardinia. I wish I were able to get appointed to some new
ship fitting out in England ; this would give me a couple of
months at home.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

March loth, 1856.

Your letter arrived yesterday, and I received it last night
after my return from Ortaquoi. It needed no apology. Any
scraps from home are always welcome. I had a long, dirty
walk, up to my ankles in mud and snow, and found only about
a dozen people at church. It was too wet for anyone to turn
out in such weather. I caught a cold, which, I hope, will soon
disappear. The ground for the church has been purchased at
last. Money, money, money is all we want. How much have
you collected ? Has Mr. Scarth been able to do anything ?

The weather has again broken ; still it is bitterly cold. It
is almost impossible to say which is the worst, the intense
cold or the intensp heat of these climates.

Thank you for the application to the college to grant me
the M.A. degree. They ought to do it, and I am disappointed
they will not. I am as bona fide resident here, as if in the
Crimea. This is my station ; it is not like a merchant ship
sailing about from port to port.

I suppose Mr. E.'s life will be written. I should like to
have it, and some of his sermons. They were none of them
very striking, and quite wanting in originality, but contained
a good compendium of what had been written upon the sub-
jects on which he preached. This, to me, is a great merit.
Originality of treatment in divinity is a point to which few
attain, but originality of doctrine is like Dr. Cumming's
theories — quackery.

4i8 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

March 17th, 1856.

I have nothing of importance to tell you, except that sleet,
snow, rain and hail are again our portion. I went, as usual,
yesterday to Ortaquoi, and had a fair congregation. On Good
Friday I have to go there again, so that I have four services
this week, almost reminding me of old times at home. Yes-
terday, you know, was " Palm Sunday," to commemorate the
triumphal entry of our Lord into Jerusalem, when the people
cast down branches from the trees and strewed them in the
way. In the Greek Church it is called, " The feast of those
who went out," and is one of the four occasions upon which
the Patriarch of the Greek Church sings Mass. It commences
their " Lent " of the " forty days," as they call it. Lent, you
know, being an old Saxon word meaning Spring. I could not
go to the Mass, as it is at seven in the morning, and at a long
distance from the ship. On their Easter I hope to attend, as
the ceremony takes place at night. I shall go and see the
Armenian Mass next Sunday. The " Papal Armenians "
(whose Patriarch I know) keep Easter with ourselves ; they
use their own Liturgy, and are, apparently, little meddled
with by the Court of Rome, but the Patriarch's chaplain tells
me they are very intolerant. I do not know how it is they
are allowed to retain the ancient Armenian Liturgy.

There are three classes of Armenian Christians : —

(i) The orthodox Armenians, as they are called, i.e., those
of the ancient church of Armenia, and whose Patriarch resides
at Esmiadsin in Armenia. These, although called orthodox,
are not so, and, from a long time back, have held heretical
opinions as to the personality of our blessed Lord.

(2) Then come the Papal, or Catholic, Armenians, who
retain the ancient Liturgy of the original church, amended in
the point I have mentioned, and reduced to conformity with
the Western Church, including ourselves, at the price, however,
of their adhesion to the Church of Rome. Another peculiarity
of this class is that their Patriarch, although an archbishop, is
named " Patriarch " by the Sultan, and he is, therefore, but a
civil officer of the Porte, a course rendered necessary by the
constitution of Turkey, which gives judicial power to the
ecclesiastical heads of Christian sects.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 419

(3) The Protestant Armenians, result from a good deal of
unpleasant work from the Calvinistic American missionaries,
who have set father against son, and mother against daughter,
and, while believing they are doing God service, have created
a gKat disturbance where none should exist. They are a
small body, and poor.

You will be heartily tired of this divinity lecture.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

March 27th, 1856.

*****

Mrs. Grey has returned, and has given five pounds to our
church at Ortaquoi. The Admiral is very friendly, but he
works me too hard. I have now to visit the gaol (a horrible
place), and he has put me on the committee of the " Sailors'
Home." However, it is my duty, and I must work at it.
Our church is begun. It is a wee place indeed. Will you
make me a present of a Queen's Arms, in gilt, for the chancel
arch ? It must be sent out at once, if you do. Best love to
all.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

March 31st, 1856.

We heard this morning the news that peace was concluded,
and a salute in consequence at twelve o'clock. The tidings have
very much pleased us all, for we are sick of this inactive life.
We have nothing to gain, and much to lose ; everything at
famine prices, and such heavy taxes. Fancy, out of one
hundred and sixty pounds per annum, I have to pay eleven
pounds income tax, all but a few shillings.

We have now, it seems, two more wars on our hands, that
of Persia and America. I do not think either will trouble us
much. The problem is still Russia and Turkey.

Will you send me out all the money you can collect for the
" chapel " at Ortaquoi ? It can be made payable by a post
office order in Constantinople. But you must send it out at
once, for we may be away. Most likely we shall have to
carry troops home, or to Malta. If you can collect a few
pounds for the church, it will relieve me from all anxiety
on the subject. I should very much like to be in the Black

27*

420 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

Sea now, and have a peep at the north side of Sevastopol.
To-day, I have just recollected, is my birthday. What an old
fellow I am, to be sure.

TO HIS FATHER. »

H.M.S. Queen,

April 7th, 1856.

I have just returned from Ortaquoi, where I went after my
duties here yesterday, held my usual service, and, for the
first time, administered the Sacrament. I preached a sermon
as earnestly as I could to a congregation of 47 people, and
had a collection at the Offertory for purchasing church plate,
altar chairs, altar cloths and font. For these purposes ;^57
IIS. 8d. was found to have been given after the service.
Fancy that for a collection ! I have deputed a merchant to
order ;^3o worth of plate from his silversmith in Liverpool,
This will buy us a chalice, paten, and alms dish, of good plain
pattern. I shall have a white marble font made for £\q, and
propose to lay out £i'-^ or £\6 in two altar chairs and cloth.

Will you tell Mrs. Buckley that an old friend of poor
Buckley's gives the plate. I was greatly delighted to pay to
the treasurer £\o from you. My connection with the place
will cease after the opening, which it is insisted I shall
superintend.

There is a grand review at Scutari to-day ; all the world
there except myself. I hear the guns saluting the Sultan,
who reviews the troops. It is one of the World sights
that I am really sorry to have to miss.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

April 14th, 1856.
It is now quite decided that we have to stay out here as
long as the Admiral remains, for on Saturday night his house
and everything it contained was burned to the ground ; clothes,
books, plate, wine, furniture and so on. These fires are so
rapid that there is never any hope of saving a house here
when it is once ignited. The catastrophe occurred about 12
o'clock, when everyone was in bed, except the secretary and
aide-de-camp. They had been playing chess until very late,
and, smelling fire, went to discover what it was. Finding the
kitchen in a blaze, and being unwilling to alarm Mrs. Grey,

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 421

they at once endeavoured to quench it. Failing in this, they
roused some of the servants as quietly as they could, but the
fire gained upon them so rapidly that they were obliged to
make a signal to us for help. Before our people could be
turned out, and the boats and fire engines got away (it taking
nearly ten minutes to do all this in the middle of the night),
the house was burning like a candle. Mrs. Grey behaved
with great courage ; she coolly secured her husband's papers,
and what she considered most valuable to him, but the
consequence was that she had to run at last ; and I picked her
out of a boat about one in the morning with nothing on but
a nightgown, a shawl, and a midshipman's cap. She was
very cold, but made a joke of it, and appeared at church
yesterday morning, arrayed in a cloak and some ill-fitting
garments which Lady Stratford had hastily sent to her. The
Admiral, poor man, was searching for his wife, but he made a
mess of it, for he secured his own jewels, and forgot her
clothes. He came on board soon after, laden ; accompanied
by his favourite setter (who got in a " funk," and nearly had
his tail burned off because he was afraid to stir when the
fire overtook him). The Admiral has lost a great deal of
property and money, and all his Stars and Orders, which
cannot be replaced.

The Greys are now at the Embassy, and are having a cabin
fitted up here, so that is settled. They are exceedingly nice
people ; and make great fun of their own losses, feeling most
for the servants, who seem nevertheless, from all I can learn,
to have taken the best care of themselves, so that I think the
sympathy is unnecessary. Strange to say, that very evening
at dinner, the Admiral said he had a presentiment that he
should be burned out some day.

Our church is progressing. We have got money enough
for the building, and want £ifi more for putting a slate roof
instead of our asphalt one, and for railing in the churchyard.
Some Armenians have come to tell us that the Turks have
resolved to burn it, so we have a guard there every night.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

April 24th, 1856.
We shifted berth the day before yesterday, and here we are
far out at sea, off Scutari. I am going to Stamboul to-day
(quite a journey now), and so just scribble ten lines to let you

422 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

know I am well. Yesterday we had a grand regatta, at
which the Ambassador was present, and all the " dons." The
day was cold and " puffy," so we had no sailing at all. It
went off" very well, however, and about 300 visitors came on
board. I had six or eight of my parishoners from Ortaquoi,
who were highly pleased.

To-morrow we start for a cruise, and if I do not go ashore
now, I shall not get off" again.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

April 28th, 1856.

Thanks for your letter, which came to hand Saturday. I
am as usual suffering from a Monday headache, resulting
from, I suppose, the little excitement of Sunday's work.
Yesterday I had to make my way to Ortaquoi from our then
anchorage, about two miles out at sea, below Scutari. This
obliged me to go a long way on foot, and then cross over.
As the current was running very strong, it took me some time
to get there. The journey back was of course rapid enough.
I found when I arrived that they had not expected me, and so
I had a very small congregation. The church will certainly
be opened on Whit Sunday. I am obliged to you, and so
will all the people be, for the kindness you have shewn in
collecting. I have no list of names, so it all goes down as
coming from you. When you send the other £\o pray remit
it to me in P. O. Orders. You had perhaps better send
what you collect from time to time, as I am anxious that, as
far as I am concerned, all may be squared up from week to
week, so that I may leave, if necessary, at a moment's
notice.

I do not anticipate any difficulty about the bills. They
will be repaid next quarter. I have been obliged to lay in a
new " kit " ; two years of salt water, losses, and a robbery of
nearly all my linen when sent to Stamboul to be washed, and
of another portmanteau full of clothes sent to England by
mistake and lost, have nearly emptied my boxes. I could
only supply them at an butlay of 100 per cent, over the price
of things at home. As the need was urgent I was obliged to
do so. Our cost of living is in the same proportion. Double
income tax, and no extra pay. Added to this, personal
expenses, which few men can do without unless they stay in
bed all day, brings my 8s. lod. to a small figure indeed.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 423

TO HIS MOTHER.

I am too tired to write. I had a hard day's work yesterday
both in church and divers matters, from early morning till late
at night, both ashore and afloat.

Lady Stratford came to church at Ortaquoi in the
afternoon. This delayed me some time, so that I did not
return here till very late, tired out and dinnerless. Her
Excellency was greatly pleased with all I showed her,
and gave us £^ towards our fund. The church will be
quite finished this week.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Quern,

May 4th, 1856.

On my return from Ortaquoi, I found your letter awaiting
me. I went there this afternoon as usual, and my friend,
Whitmarsh, of the Agamemnon, preached. Another naval
chaplain read the prayers for me, so the church afloat was
verj'- strong. I was a listener, an event which but rarely
happens to me.

I do, indeed, lose much by being shut out from com-
munion with my kind ; and yet if this is urged as a disad-
vantage to naval chaplains, we are laughed at. My day of
probation is a heavy one, and my heart sinks when I think
how ill I shall come out of the trial. God help me ! I wish
to work well. I have often risked my life in my duty,
and would never hesitate to do so ; but in every-day occur-
rences, in the little acts of daily business, where the
Christian's life is hidden, it is then I fail. I often think in
my despair that it would be better for me if God would
take me away in some act of hard duty in which all my
mind was absorbed ; and that before my cup was very full. If
I had died in the camp when I worked early and late with
little success, and no encouragement, to help me on, doubtless
much would not now have to be accounted against me.

The £\2.\ have not yet drawn cwt of Hanson's hands, the
day appointed for winding up our accounts with the architect
being a week hence. Within ;^2o we have all we want for our
contract, but we have so many extras that money, money,
money, is still our cry. We also beg now for subscriptions
towards a school and minister's house. I thank you much for

424 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

your help. We cannot slate our church, the heat of the sun
being fatal to slates. The roof is too steep for tiles. Our
pitch is that of an equilateral triangle. I insisted upon
this proportion. You will be startled when I tell you that I
have beguiled the architect into painting the roof deep blue.
Of course, you never saw a church roof blue, but I have, and
it looks very well. Our magpie colours of black and white
are very offensive to me after such a long experience of the
warm colours of the East. Our roof is wood, covered with
asphalt, and that again with strong canvas painted.

We have four services next Sundaj', the opening day ; the
first at 7.30 in the morning. ' I hope to attend this, Captain
Stopford having kindly promised to take my service here.
At 10 we have a Te Deum, then the Litany, and Communion
Service, with a sermon preached by Mr. Curtis, the first
missionary here from the S. P. G. After the sermon a
collection at the Offertory. At 3, evening service, the sermon
by my friend Blackerton, the Embassy chaplain. At 6, an
evening service, and I hope to address my own people as a
kind of summing up. I am so out of practice in reading and
writing that I could not consent to publish my sermon. The
text you propose would not suit me. I am not a builder
of the synagogue. My text will be, " Hold fast that thou
hast, let no man take thy crown." This will give me ample
scope for historical, dogmatical,* and practical arguments. I
do not think the people there will give me anything. They
seem to think they have done all they need, and, indeed, they
have given me all support. I know the world quite well
enough to be sure that few will recollect me six months after
my departure. I was obliged to tell the " churchwardens "
yesterday that they must put a horse or boat at my disposal
on Sundays and Wednesdays. When the weather was cooler
I walked to save my pocket, but now it is out of the question
(with my present state of health), and the expenses of four or
five miles by boat or horseback, really take up a portion of
my income considerably exceeding one-third. I was quite
alarmed in looking into my pocket book to see what I had
spent at Ortaquoi in subscriptions, boat hire, &c., &c. The
people were very glad to offer to assist me, and had been
talking it over. I told them frankly I was very poor, and that
I would not cost them a penny but I was becoming positively
impoverished, as of late I have had to go nearly every day.
However, to-day they sent me no caique, and I have paid 6s.
out of my own pocket, leaving me nearly is. 6d. to pay

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FII'TIES. 425

my board and lodging ! The weather is fearfully close
and hot.

Have you had a letter from me mentioning a chance of
doing something at Odessa ? Quantities of machinery will be
necessary in Russia. The English Government are building a
large factory here. It will be let when finished to a naval
engineer of the name of Murdoch. He is a man well known
in the Service, a Scotchman, a friend of mine, and as honest
as the day, besides being an exceedingly clever engineer. I
wish George could enter into partnership with him.

I am glad to hear you are going to send out the Queen's
arms as soon as possible. The nine o'clock gun has just
fired, and, like the school-girls' bell, is the signal to leave off
writing. I always read or ruminate for some time before
going to bed.

TO HIS MOTHER.

H.M.S. Queen,
Monday Morning, May 12th.
I am only just able to say that I am quite knocked up,
owing to the physical exertions, the excitement, and the
anxiety of the last two days. All went off well yesterday.
The collection amounted to ;£'S4 in the church, and ;^30 has
since been promised. We want ;£^5CX) more to build a good
house and school. The day was beautifully fine. We had four
or five clergymen present. I hope the little church will spread
its influence about on all sides. My sermon was an historical
one, shewing the progress of corruption in the Christian
Church. How ritual had become more splendid, and doc-
trines perverted, since the Apostolic days. I sketched rapidly
the state of the Church under Constantine — the sire of
the Trinitarian controversies — alluding all through to local
antiquities and towns which everyone knew. In the midst of it
all sudden darkness closed in, and I had to finish. I ex-
pressed regret for this, and then addressed them for about ten
minutes ; I believe acceptably in some respects, for my heart
was full. At all events, many were much affected, even to
tears. They are warm-hearted folk. My text was from
Revelations iii. 12. No official was there except the Admiral
(and Mrs. Grey), the former in full uniform. The American
Minister sent me i,ooo piastres, about £^. My head aches.

Kindest love.

426 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

TO HIS FATHER.

H.M.S. Queen,

May 26th, 1856.

You must not trouble yourself about my reports of
headache, for I always have them now. The weather is so
hot (82° in the shade, and 100° in the sun yesterday) and
I have to go about so much that it is impossible to be very
well.

Our church, as far as the contract with the builder goes, is
out of debt ; we want some money for slates and fences, and
are desirous of building a parsonage house. We hardly know
what to do for a clergyman. By this time you may have seen
a full account of the opening in the Times. It will give you a
better idea, doubtless, than I can give. It was, I think,
written by an eye-witness, and will be more trustworthy than
my description. Yesterday, we had a large congregation of
strangers, as well as most of our own people. We are about
to put up a monument to the memory of four assistant
surgeons of the Army, who died out here.

I cannot have the home ship I applied for, someone else
having got it. Claims are of no use in our Service. I should
have liked to have had a ship for one whole year, but it is of
little consequence now ; lately the Government have altered
the scheme for Naval Instructors. I have not yet seen the
circulars, but am told it is a course which is attainable by
young men just fresh from college, but not by those who have
been some years at work in their profession.

I am writing in my cabin by lamplight, with the hot
sirocco blowing through my port. Across the Bosphorus is
a large ship filled with troops, and so still is everything
that I am listening to a flute player at the distance of a mile,
crooning through his instrument, some of our sweetest, old,
psalm tunes. He may be one of my dear Blue-jackets filled
with thoughts of home, and home's softest and holiest
memories, now recurring, perhaps after months of hard
misery, blasphemy, and blood. Surely there is a soft spot in
every man's heart ; and even the worst has some little inch of
ground wherein good seed may be sown.

427

CHAPTER XXXV.

In 1853 Russian diplomacy had determined that the 1856
map of Europe should be re-made ; the Treaty of Paris
left it almost untouched, but uncertainty was so con-
stant a factor in all the causes, operations, and issues of
the struggle, that its truest designation is still the
Doubtful Campaign.

' ' What the Russian war was about nobody knows to
this day, but we all felt very much outraged at the
time," wrote one who had ample opportunity for per-
sonal observation of its dubious phases and casual
developments ; * and other summings-up also resulted
in vague and differing verdicts.

As after events proved, the choice of the Crimea fdr
the seat of war was itself doubtful wisdom, while
immense strategic benefit might have accrued from a
campaign in the Transcaucasian provinces. There,
thousands of disaffected Moslems, brave bands of hill
tribes, who resolutely held their own against Russian
aggression, would have gladly fought on the side of the
Allies. Turkish interests might thus have been as well
protected ; and, in all probability, the Tsar's road to
India effectually barred. But, from first to last, the
doubtful policy prevailed ; and was never more singularly
evidenced than by P^lissier's grave mistake in the pro-
longed retention of Omar Pasha in the Crimea, where
the besieging army was large enough, for the work still
to be done, without the Turkish troops, whose presence

* Sir Edmund Verney in Contemporary Review, November, 1899.

428 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES

1856 was a bitter necessity to these hill tribes, and to the
heroic defender of Kars.

And even when the Treaty of Paris was arranged,
diplomatic acumen did not foresee how vital was the
insistence of an Article interdicting Russia from again
occupying the forts, on the Circassian coasts, which had
been captured in the war. When these forts were soon
after occupied by Russia, the brave inhabitants of the
country could procure neither aid nor ammunition, and,
rather than surrender, 200,000 of them emigrated into
Turkish territory. They were a wild highland people,
who, for years, had lived a hand-to-mouth existence, in
constant fear and dread ; and, numbers in Bulgaria
finding themselves fettered by laws among a race
whose tongue and religion were similar to those of their
foe, the " atrocities " resulted, but might never have
occurred had the Allies fought the Russians in Asia on
the side of these very strong and determined tribes.
Russia would then have been so far from her supplies
that there must have ensued battles on the waters of
the Black Sea.

A war has rarely been conducted on more divided
counsels. Details and difficulties alike were left to the
discretion of the Commanders-in-Chief, though their
hands were tied by despatches from London and Paris,
totally opposed in aim. Generals, with intense con-
victions of what ought to be done, were again and
again thwarted in their plans, which, though fallible,
might still have been considered more practicable, and
promising, than instructions from Cabinet Ministers,
who had not sufficient imagination to realize the inevit-
able conditions that had to be encountered 3,000 miles
away.

It is conceivable that commanders of strong calibre
like Lord Raglan and Marshal P^lissier, must have
frequently resolved never in the future to share a re-
sponsibility, on such an equivocal basis, which included
such grave risks.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 429

Public opinion too — always an incalculable factor — 1856
was so variable, that hard-won reputations had little
weight, if their owners momentarily failed. One day
it lauded certain leaders to the skies, the next,
nothing would serve but recall. Even when the end
came, incertitude had sway. The British Government
desired the destruction of all the forts, docks, and
aqueducts of the captured South side of Sevastopol.
The Emperor of the French wished to have the
maritime establishments conserved,* and the wisdom
of both plans had to be discussed diplomatically,
before the engineers set about the work of total
demolition.

Had it been convenient to compute all the assets
and losses of the campaign, there might have proved
less doubt in such a measure than in the summing-up
of the causation and results of the conflict, for the
reasons that led to the war have always been disputed
points ; and, notwithstanding the treaty of Paris, and
many subsequent astute negotiations, the Eastern
question is still an unsolved problem.

Although some authorities had predicted that Se-
vastopol only needed bombarding for a fortnight to
have fallen months before, with ammunition scarce,
firing had too often to be discontinued at a vital
moment. But Russia's lust for increase of power had
at last received a check ; and the Allies had justified
their temerity in challenging the dictates of a Ruler,
who could go to war, and draft thousands of his
subjects from one extreme boundary of his vast em-
pire to the other, without having need to refer to
any parliament for permission, or for the means re-
quired. In pitting themselves against the resources
of the Tsar, they had defied an Imperialism upheld
by a force, which, when moral supremacy has been
the aim of its monarch, even without external troubles,

* "The War in the Crimea,'' p. 291. — General Sir E. Hamley.

430 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

has always proved a crushing weight of sovereignty.
And the Allies had not been worsted ; their enemy,
attacked and beaten in his own dominion, had been
more anxious than any of the other Powers for peace
negotiations.

The great drama, moreover, had not been finished
without fulfilment of every humiliating item in the
programme of a siege, even to the sacking of the
captured town. This practice, being one of the usual
results of victory, suggests the question whether
conquest or defeat be the more demoralizing to the
troops engaged. The ethical lessons forced on the
world by the influence and practice of a war, can be
ignored no less than its glories, but, as the nations
involved often become indifferent regarding the issues
of a prolonged conflict, instead of a true, lasting, and
deterring significance, dwelling in the public con-
science, there remains but a pitifully feeble impression,
which time too soon erases.

A celebrated newspaper correspondent, whose ex-
posure of inconvenient truths evoked the opinion
that he and others of his profession " should be
gagged," pointed out in 1856, how much more
mobile the French troops were than the British.
This, and sterner lessons of the Crimea, have been
bitterly emphasized recently in Britain's first sub-
sequent great war with a white race. Naturally
those who are responsible for the retention of the
obsolete methods other nations have discarded, would
fain always suppress discerning comments, and war
correspondents who " see the game " must often feel,
when prompted to speak out boldly, though they do
not say, cui bono ? The ubiquitous journalists who
brave the fire of the enemy, in addition to the scowls
of inimical generals, though frequently protesting in
vain, help the public to form just determinations.
But, notwithstanding being bound, as these writers
are, to describe every event in brilliant style, points

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 431

are often lost in the effort to embellish facts : bleak
truth is sometimes the only statement that will tell.

By hereditary obligation, England should always
have the most invincible Navy in the world, yet, in
the Black Sea, her ships carried men and guns, and
bombarded some fortified places, but Russian naval
strategy — colossal sacrifice though it was to sink war-
ships across the harbour of Sevastopol — frustrated
their chance of adequately helping the sister Service on
land. The bridge of boats too, constructed to effect
the evacuation of the North side, which our ships did
not prevent, might rank as a naval manoeuvre of a
first-class order, unsurpassed in effectiveness by any
British naval attempt at that period. These Russian
devices were not carried out in the days of staring
search lights, and submarine torpedoes. As we read
" there was great excitement when the auxiliary screw
two-decker H.M.S. Sanspareil, 70 guns, steamed into
BeicoS Bay "... though " the Sanspareil was
fairly eclipsed when the French two-decker Napoleon
arrived,"* we recognise the naval power that was then
available, while imagination can hardly exaggerate the
destructive possibilities of a similar war in this day.

Before the end of the campaign the British troops
had learnt to respect the Russian soldier, but familiarity
with their own Ally — their ancient and alas, future
rival, the French — had engendered few individual
friendships. Possibly both sides were to blame, for
each possessed traits that were incomprehensible to the
other. It, however, had been compensation for much
they had to endure in common, to feel that, though
their enemies fought " like fiends " behind ramparts,
in the open, numbers being equal, they themselves were
safe to win ; and perhaps this knowledge made the
Allies more tolerant with their prisoners.

Marshal Pdlissier chose the name to be appended to

* Sir Edmund Verney, in Contemporary Review, November, 1899.

432 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

his new honour : Due de Malakofif was a high-sounding
title, and probably the famous soldier knew nothing of
the origin of the name, or knowing, thought the actual
word mattered little if it perpetuated a great event. A
certain fraudulent purser called Malakoff in the Russian
Navy was dismissed the service, and, starting a vodki
shop (supplied by smuggling), was patronized by sailors
of the lowest class, and the bare hill, whereon the shop
was situated, became known by the name of this pur-
veyor of vodki. Before his day it was a burial-place
for suicides.* Doubtless as the fortress afterwards
constructed on this mound withstood cannonading for
nearly 1 2 months, and was at last captured by his gal-
lant troops, Pelissier considered the act glorified even
the humblest associations. Brave deeds always cancel
evil reputations ; and the Marshal by no means lacked
the dramatic element in his character that could discern
this truth. His renown may well rest on a military
career, which culminated in the skill and promptitude
displayed by him in the Crimea. He was Ambassador
to Great Britain in 1857, and was always heartily
received in this country.

History is said to be "a distillation of rumours," and
it frequently hides the true reasons for conditions that
remain, when well-meaning conjecture — probably wide
of the mark — endeavours to supply the lack. Its pages
still keep the primitive nature of man alert, and,
judging from the present wars and rumours of wars,
weird pictures of battle, murder, and sudden death, will
no doubt gratify the elemental passions till the end
of time.

It may be a foolish confession to make in this
enlightened and diplomatic age, but at heart we are
all more interested in the war chapters of our nation's
history, than in those depicting the most brilliant states-
manship. To the majority, descriptions of contests

* Related to the writer by Mr. William Simpson.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 433

are irresistibly attractive ; and the reason for this may-
be the universal, tacit understanding that victory must
be assured before a worthy fight can end, whether on
the high seas or on a battle-field, where each side is
striving for the right to paint a larger portion of the
map of the world the colour of the Flag to which it
belongs. As the object of all warfare is to kill, or
permanently disable, from the ethical point of view, to
call one mode civilized and another savage, is a dis-
tinction without a difference. But, if war be inevitable,
paradoxical though it may seem, it is paramountly the
duty of its originators to safeguard the lives of those
who have to take its risks. The consequences of " the
last crime against humanity " can never be foretold ;
the noblest qualities are evolved by struggling armies,
and by those countries which have to make the needed
sacrifices ; but, in the Crimea, the soldier's worst
enemy, disease, had been less prevalent had there been
a less inert Administration.

It is curious that, although many of the charges pre-
ferred against it now appear to be the outcome of recent
experience, they are, in reality, only echoes of those flung
at the War Office in the Fifties. The marvel is, that
iteration of warnings, about munitions and lack of up-
to-date practical knowledge (whether they concern
defective range of artillery, ignorance that ensures
disaster, inefficient hospital service, or tardy rewards),
falling on deaf ears, does not provoke the revolt of the
victims. But British Blue-jackets and soldiers do not
revolt ; they are always too much concerned about
getting through the business they have in hand. And
the unthinkable fact remains, that both in the Crimea
and South Africa, by endurance, valour, and tenacity,
they had to expiate the accumulated sins of a permanent
Officialdom. It is obvious that something must be
radically wrong with either officers, or men, or the
military system, in such endless lists of surprises,
and deaths of both leaders and troops, whose long

434 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

1856 limbs, straight backs, and alert and healthy counten-
ances, should, and would, ensure their possessors
rendering a good account of themselves in attack or
defence, however formidable the foe, if adequate
training and reasonable conditions were imperative.

All great reformations come from within ; and the cry
of the British people to-day, as it has been, at recurring
intervals, since the time of Pitt, is for the strengthening
of our Navy and a revolution of our Military System.
National prestige being in jeopardy, the country rightly
calls for an organization that can fitly grapple
with time-worn methods, and hindering authority.
We have a heritage of unsurpassed naval and military
annals, and to our long, long roll of brave dead each
generation in turn owes a debt. The lessons taught
by experience at the price of their lives, form the debt,
and promptly indeed should it be paid by the survivors :
if those who were slain were sacrificed by evils in the
system, should not these evils be frankly acknowledged
and remedied ? Were this done the Empire might well
rejoice in the reflection that, although their best and
bravest went forth to their doom, 'twas not in vain they
died, now that

" The old order changeth and yieldeth place to new."

And even in this age of materialism there are men
who can touch the imagination of the world with
splendid dreams of what might be. It is remarkable
that one of these dreams, the proposition for universal
disarmament, should have emanated from the descend-
ant of Nicholas I. In some future era the Tsar's
purpose may prove to have been the vision of a seer,
for are we not all looking for a millennium ? That we
are not yet ready for it is no argument against its sure
advent in the future ; and, even ere that time shall
come, a dream like this may find, in the minds of all
men, sympathy instead of mere tolerance. Mean-
while those who regret its impossibly ideal nature

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 435

must still hope, although they know he is right who 1856
asked : " What would be the fate of the inhabitants
of the civilised nations if they were to deprive them-
selves of all means of defence against the barbarians
who outnumber them by many millions ? " *

In the Crimea the effects of the war have not been
permanent. Article 12 of the Treaty interdicted the
maintenance of a Military Maritime Arsenal, either by
the Tsar or the Sultan. No naval haven was to be
permitted on the Black Sea ; but Russia has her
great docks again at Sevastopol, and also her Black
Sea Fleet. The Mamelon and the Malakoff are still
standing, and new batteries line the coast. True,
there is a public park where "our batteries called
for such terrible sacrifice of human life," f but Sevas-
topol, fortified afresh, is as great a menace to foreign
ships of war as in the Fifties.

A whole generation has lived, and quarrelled, and
fought since that time. The accomplished foragers,
mendicants, and vagabonds who flitted on the outskirts
of the camps, and were probably the only persons mate-
rially benefited by the war, no doubt are all dead long
ago. The unchartered corporation of Kadikoi quickly
dispersed ; and vineyards and orchards there, and
at Balaklava, are again flourishing. And of " that
anomalous class of mortals, those poor hired killers "
who swaggered, and strutted, and anon so bravely
endured, how few remain ; and even the few, who,
of them all, deserved so well of their countrymen,
the little remnant of the " noble six hundred," do not
appear to count in the heroic lists of those whom the
Nation delighteth to honour. Yet some of them are
busy fighting still — the grim, inglorious enemy men
call — Circumstance !

The concluding sentence of his last letter in this

* Lord Roberts,
t Sir Evelyn Wood.

28*

436 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

book embodied one of Kelson Stothert's impelling
beliefs, and the result was a life of earnest labour for
his fellows. When at length he had to leave the
Bosphorus, he took with him the hearts of the
Ortaquoi congregation. He was presented with a
testimonial from the little flock he had, in addition to
his naval duty, voluntarily shepherded. The silver
cup was a beautiful bit of workmanship, and the
address, which accompanied it, was unique in its
simplicity and undoubted sincerity :

" We, the undersigned inhabitants of Ortaquoi, Constanti-
nople, beg through this means to testify our heartfelt thanks
and gratitude to the Rev. Samuel Kelson Stothert, Chaplain
to H.M.S. Queen, for his indefatigable exertions and unre-
mitting attention in the successful erection of the first English
church in Ortaquoi, by which means the inhabitants of the
above village have been able to follow their devotions and
thanksgivings to Almighty God. It is with deepest sorrow
that the undersigned inhabitants learn that the Rev. S. K.
Stothert is to leave them, for, during the short season he has
been with them, he has, by his urbanity and kindliness of
heart, his humility, his unswerving integrity of purpose, so
won the affections of all, that his leaving is a source of the
deepest regret to his fellow countrymen. As a last tribute of
affection and regard, we, the undersigned, beg that the • Rev.
S. K. Stothert will accept a small token from us, which awaits
him upon his arrival in England, as a presentation from
his obliged and ever-faithful congregation. May he, on his
arrival in England, find all his dear friends in the enjoyment
of every blessing that can be bestowed. May he never know
sorrow in its slightest form, and may he soon return to his
friends in Ortaquoi."

To the whilom much-loved Chaplain to the Naval
Brigade, the fact of having founded the first Christian
Church in Turkey was perhaps a truer source of satis-
faction than the possesion of the Baltic, Turkish, and-
Crimean medals, for when he wore these decorations at
levees and ceremonials, it was with an almost half
apologetic concealment, under his gown.

SILVER CUP

PRESENTED TO KELSON STOTHERT BY THE PEOPLE OF ORTAQUOI, TURKEY.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 437

For a time he was Incumbent at Holy Trinity,
Malta, and Chaplain to the Bishop of Gibraltar, and
was chosen to accompany a special Embassy under
Lord Clarence Paget to Egypt. It is related in his
family that his absences from England were of such
long duration, that, on the occasion of a gathering at
home after his father's death, one of his young sisters
coming to meet him, he asked her : " Who are you,
dear ? I really can't tell which ! "

He was regularly initiated at the Zetland Lodge of
Freemasons (No. 518), La Valetta, Malta, on the nth
April, 1864, and was raised to the sublime degree of
Master Mason two months after that date. He served
in many of Her Majesty's ships, and went on the
retired list in 1870.

His friendship with the late Bishop of Oxford had
no interruption till the much-lamented death of Samuel
Wilberforce. It was the Bishop who appointed him to
fill a vacancy at St. Giles, Camberwell, during a period
of friction and unsettlement in that parish, where his
tact, and fine preaching, did much to bring opposing
factions together.

In 1 87 1 he became Vicar of Northam, but in the
following year, when a rector was required for Ordsall,
Notts, the gift was offered by Lord Wharncliffe to Dr.
Stothert, and it was accepted. His health was the
stumbling-block to further preferment.

He married first, Eliza Margaret, daughter of Mr.
Henry Kendall, of Mortlake ; his second wife was
Anastasia Caroline Alexandrina, daughter of Mr. Henry
Baker, Treasurer-General of the Ionian Islands, and
she, and his family of sons and daughters, survived him.

His scholarly taste for literature increased as the
physical effects of the Crimean hardships became more
pronounced.

His aptitude for writing reviews, and critical essays,
was a source of much interest, and occupied the hours
which he was compelled, through ill-health, to spend in

438 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

his study. The following paragraphs from the columns
of the Retford Times, which, with many similar appre-
ciations, appeared after his death in June, 1892, will
best tell of the love and admiration Kelson Stothert
inspired in the hearts of the people among whom his
last years were spent : —

" With unfeigned regret we record this morning the decease
of the Rev. Samuel Kelson Stothert, M.A., LL.D., the Rector
of Ordsall, who died at the Rectory on Sunday morning, aged
sixty-nine years. As many of the parishioners were aware,
he had been in failing health for some years, but, in spite of
bodily infirmity, he struggled on manfully, and almost died in
harness. With a great deal more courage and fortitude than
is possessed by most men, he officiated at the morning service
on the very Sunday before he passed from work to rest. He
suffered acutely from rheumatic gout. During the week his
strength rapidly declined, and the various members of his
family were summoned. He was conscious almost to the last.
It was evident to all that he was greatly concerned for the
welfare and prosperity of the parish in which so large a part
of his life had been spent. ... At his desire he was so
placed as to be able to see the church from the window of his
room, in order to take a last look of the place wherein he had
so loved to minister. Some time after midnight he seemed to
lapse into unconsciousness, and at twenty minutes past four

quietly passed home to God.

# * * * *

At Ordsall the extensive work of church building and
restoration, which Dr. Stothert at various times had been
instrumental in conceiving and carrying out, was still con-
tinued. As most of us are aware, the parish church of All
Hallows, Ordsall, was thoroughly restored in 1877 at a cost of
something like ;^3,ooo. It was a truly great work. Only
those who remember the moth-eaten rafters, the misshapen
and decrepit pews, the walls crumbling to ruins, can fitly
contrast the appearance of the church then with what it is
to-day. The undertaking was beset with difficulties, all of
which, happily, gave way before Dr. Stothert's dauntless
energy and unwearied zeal, and it was yet another proof of
his devotion to the church he so strongly loved.

He reformed the service. He neither could nor would
tolerate in it anything approaching slovenliness, and he made

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 439

it strangely beautiful, solemn, and impressive. As a reader,
he probably had no equal in the district. As literary produc-
tions, his sermons were little gems ; not lengthy, seldom more
than a quarter of an hour's duration, but couched in the
purest, and the most severely accurate, language, illumined at
times by exquisite gleams of poetry — poems in prose, with
occasional illustrations, never humorous, but always refined,
well chosen, reverent, and appropriate. Prevented by con-
tinuous physical weakness from fully discharging the active
and arduous duties necessary in a parish of 3,852 souls, and
having an area of nearly 2,000 acres, it was a loss to the
parishioners and an ever-present cause of regret to himself,
yet he did great service both for God and the Church."

However interesting such relation, it would have far
exceeded the design of this book to have mentioned
individually all those gallant officers who took con-
spicuous parts in the war. Other writers have already
told their splendid deeds, and there are not many
churches in the kingdom that have not the name
Crimea, on one, or more, of their memorial stones.
But the last word in praise of those who died on
Russian and Turkish ground will never be said
while the world holds unconquerable valour, and
uncomplaining fulfilment of duty, its ideals of human
conduct.

Whether the purposes, for which officers and men
alike so nobly gave their lives, were achieved or no,
had a less shiftless policy prevailed, certain lessons
concerning the British military system would have
been salutary in the Fifties, instead of the urgently
needed reforms being deferred till the beginning of a
new Century.

But, among the many doubtful consequences of the
Crimean War, the principal rights involved are yet
maintained. Although the Sultan's Exchequer no
longer excites the envy of European financiers, his
prerogative must be reckoned with in the great councils

440 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

of the nations. And, notwithstanding that motives of
deeper import than mere friendly alliance are indicated
by their attitude, the Western Powers still jealously
guard the integrity of his dominions when attacked by
other Governments. To the Tsar of all the Russias
has not yet been accorded the Protectorate of the
followers of the Greek Church in Turkey ; and to-day
still the red flag, with the Star and the Crescent, sacred
to millions, waves over the waters of the Bosphorus,
the Dardanelles, and the Golden Horn.

442

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

APPENDIX No. I.

Captain S. Eardley-Wilmot, R.N., in his " Life of Vice-
Ad miral Edmund Lord Lyons," states that the Fleet which
entered the Black Sea, and the vessels which joined later,
comprised the following * : —

Ship.

Guns.

Sail or
Steam.

Officer in Command.

Britannia

120

Sail

( Vice- Admiral Deans Dundas, C.B.
1 Capt. Thomas W. Carter.

Trafalgar

1 20

Sail

Capt. H. F. Greville.

Queen

116

Sail

Capt. Frederick T. Michell.

Agamemtum . . .

Screw

( Rear-Admiral Sir E. Lyons, G.C.B.
\ Capt. T. M. C. Symonds.

Albion

Sail

Captain Stephen Lushington.

Rodney

Sail

Capt. Charles Graham.

London

Sail

Capt. Charles Eden.

Vengeance

Sail

Capt. Lord Edward Russell.

Bellerophon ...

Sail

Capt. Lord George Paulet.

Sanspareil

Screw

Capt. Sydney C. Dacres.

Arethusa

Sail

Capt. W. R. Mends.

Leander

Sail

Capt. George St. Vincent King.

Tribune

Screw

Capt. Hon. S. Carnegie.

Curafoa

Screw

Capt. Hon. G. Hastings.

Retribution ...

Paddle

Capt. Hon. James Drummond.

Diamond

Sail

Capt. William Peel.

Terrible

Paddle

Capt. James J. McCleverty.

Sidon ...

Paddle

Capt. George Goldsmith.

Highflyer ...

Screw

Capt. John Moore.

Furious

Paddle

Capt. William taring.

Tiger

Paddle

Capt. H. Giffard.

X^iger ...

Screw

Commander Leopold Heath.

Sampson

Paddle

Capt. L. T. Jones.

Firebrand

Paddle

Capt. Hyde Parker.

Wasp

Screw

Commander Lord John Hay.

Fury

Paddle

Commander Edward Tathan.

Inflexible

Paddle

Commander G. Popplewell.

Cyclops

Paddle

R. W. Roberts, Master.

Vesuvius

Paddle

Commander Ashmore Powell.

Spitfire

Paddle

Commander T. A. Spratt.

Triton

— Paddle

Lieutenant H. Lloyd.

Lynx

Screw

Lieut. J. P. Luce.

Simoon

Troopship

Capt. H. Smith.

Vulcan

—

Troopship

Capt. E. P. Von Donop.

Megcera

Troopship

Capt. J. 0. Johnson.

f * Shortly after the bombardment of Sevastopol, in October 1854, consider-
able additions were made to the Black Sea Fleet. The line of battle ships were
reinforced by Royal Albert, Princess Royal, and Algiers. There were also the
Beagle, Arrow, Viper, and Snake, sister ships to the Lynx. Several small gunboats,
too, were hurriedly built for the war, and did good service in the Sea of Azof.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES 443

In the same work Captain Eardley-Wilmot also gives the
following interesting facts concerning the condition of the
Mercantile Marine on which the Government was compelled
to rely for aid during the Crimean war : —

"Steam had progressed with greater rapidity in the
Mercantile Marine than it had in the State Navy. Dating
its entrance from 1820, by 1844 the number of merchant
steamers in this country had grown to nearly 1,000, with a
total of 125,000 tons. In 1854 they had risen in number to
1,700, and the tonnage to 326,000. The dimensions of
merchant steamers were likewise increasing, so that in 1853
the Government were able to acquire that fine vessel the
Himalaya of 3,500 tons from the P. and O. Company, and
which has only recently terminated her useful career as a
troopship. Great as had been the advance of steam shipping,
this source could not supply all the requirements of such an
undertaking, and a number of sailing ships had to be hired,
principally to carry stores and ammunition.

" Though the daily hire of a steamer exceeded that of a
sailing-ship, owing to the cost of coal on the voyage, it was
cheaper because the work could be more expeditiously
performed. A steamer of 2,500 tons taken up then at 50s.
per ton per month would, with coal, cost about ;£^38o a day.
She would carry 1,500 men and 500 tons of stores. At 10
knots the passage to the Black Sea would take about 14 days
and the total cost be about ;^5,ooo. A sailing-ship of 1,000
tons at 30S. per ton per month would take 60 days to get to
the Black Sea, and cost ;£'3,ooo."

444 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

APPENDIX No. II.

Kinglake gives the following returns after the battle of
the Alma : —

" In the action the French lost three officers killed ; and on
grounds which he deemed, and (privately) stated to be to his
mind conclusive, Lord Raglan came to the belief that
their whole loss in killed was 60, and the number of
wounded 500. The English Army lost 25 officers and 19
sergeants killed, and 81 officers and 102 sergeants wounded,
and of rank and file 318 killed and 1,438 wounded;
making, with the 19 who were missing, and who are
supposed to have been buried in the ruins of the house in the
village, a total loss of 2,002. The loss of the Russians in
killed and wounded was officially stated at 5,700," etc., etc.

In " Our Veterans," by Colonel Wilson, we find the following
somewhat different list ; doubtless Kinglake's was written
after the matter had been fully sifted : " The French returns
give three officers killed, 54 wounded, 253 non-commissioned
officers and soldiers killed, 1,033 wounded. — Total hors de
combat, 1,343.

" The British bled more freely, namely, 26 officers — 19
sergeants — two drummers — 306 rank and file killed. 73
officers — 95 sergeants — 17 drummers — 1,427 rank and file
wounded. — Total casualties, 1,965.

" Total loss of the Allies, 3,308."

" We are more than ever convinced that, without the
reduction of this fortress* and the capture of the Russian Fleet,
it will be impossible to conclude an honourable and safe
peace." — Private letter from the Duke of Newcastle to Lord
Raglan, June 28th, 1854.

* Sevastopol,

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 445

APPENDIX No. III.
BALAKLAVA.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE "STANDARD."

Sir, — I heard no trumpet sound that day, but only the
verbal order from my place in the ranks of the nth Hussars
— and at such a time you may well believe one is " all eyes
and ears " — " The Light Brigade will advance," and almost
immediately afterwards "Trot." Lord Tredegar's recent
account confirms this. He says there was no order after the
word "Trot." Mr. Bird, of the 8th Hussars, L.C.C., informs
me that an order had been issued prohibiting " sounding," I
assume in view of the impolicy of possibly furnishing the
enemy with notification of projected movements. My im-
pression remains indelible that no trumpet ever sounded the
" Charge."

I am. Sir, your obedient servant,

W. H. PENNINGTON.
Stoke Newington, N., April 5.

APPENDIX No. IV.

ROYAL PATRIOTIC FUND.

The Reports of the Select Committees appointed to enquire
into the administration of the Royal Patriotic Fund have not
yet resulted in the much-needed expansion of its methods.
Mr. Balfour on the 28th January, in the House, gave assurance
that the Royal Commissioners would not think of allowing
their Charter to stand in the way of any reforms the Govern-
ment might desire. But many old Crimean veterans are still
without the adequate pensions their services have merited ;
while Balaklava heroes have meanwhile had to die in the
workhouse, where others of their fast-diminishing number,
doubtless, expect to find, when age shall have made them,
also, helpless, more tender mercy than that shown to them by
the Administrators of the Royal Patriotic Fund.

446 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

APPENDIX No. V.

LORD RAGLAN.

Army of the East, No. 15, General Order.

" Death has suddenly taken away while in full exercise
of his command the Field-Marshal Lord Raglan, and has
plunged the British in mourning.

" We all share the regret of our brave Allies. Those who
knew Lord Raglan, who knew the history of his life — so
noble, so pure, so replete with service rendered to his country
— those who witnessed his fearless demeanour at Alma and
Inkerman, who recall the calm and stoic greatness of his
character throughout this rude and memorable campaign,
every generous heart indeed will deplore the loss of such a
man. The sentiments here expressed by the General-in-Chief
are those of the whole army. He has himself been cruelly
struck by this unlooked-for blow.

" The public grief only increases his sorrow at being for
ever separated from a companion-in-arms whose genial
spirit he loved, whose virtues he admired, and from whom
he has always received the most loyal and hearty
co-operation.

(Signed) " A. Pelissier,

" Commander-in-Chief

" Headquarters, before Sevastopol,
"29th June, 1855."

" By Order
(Signed) " E. DE MartimprEY,

" Lieut. -Gen., Chief of the Staff.

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES. 447

APPENDIX No. VI.

The following paragraph is copied from "Letters from
Headquarters," where the statistics are attributed to the
Invalide Russe : —

"The Russian losses in Sevastopol, from August 17th to
September 7th, were as follows : — August 17th, 1,500 men ;
from the i8th to the 21st, 1,000 men daily = 4,000 men;
and from the 22nd of August to the 4th of September, from
500 to 600 men every twenty-four hours, say = 7,700 men.
Their loss on the 5th, 6th, and 7th of September was 4,000 ;
consequently the total number of killed and wounded in the
garrison of Sevastopol, from the 17th of August to the 7th of
September inclusive, was no less than 17,200 casualties, not
including the artillerymen who perished at their guns. This
statement is the admission of Prince Gortschakoff, Commander-
in-Chief of the Russian Army."

Sir William Russell gives the following statistics in " The
Great War with Russia " : —

"In the month of April, 1854, the number of sick in Lord
Raglan's Army quartered in Turkey and in Bulgaria, then an
integral portion of the dominions of the Sultan, was 503. In
July, when the army was concentrated round Varna, and
camp sickness of various sorts became marked before the
cholera was thoroughly developed, the number of sick in-
creased to 6,937. ^^ the month of September the sick in-
creased to 1 1,693. In November the sick number increased to
16,846. In December the number increased to 19,479. In
January, 1855, the sick cases reached the appalling figure of
23,076. Under the head ' Died in the East,' the figures are
390 officers, 20,707 men ; invalided home, 1,407 officers,
14,901 men — a total decrease of 3. There were 2,755 killed
in action, died of wounds 1,619 — total, 4,374. In other words,
the loss from the fire and steel of the enemy was less than
one-eighth of that which resulted from the hardships of a
winter campaign, which were needlessly aggravated by want
of care in providing for its exigencies."

448 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

From " The War in the Crimea," by General Sir Edward
Hamley, K.C.B.

Copious libations of blood marked this final sacrifice. The
French lost, in all, 7,567 officers and men ; Generals St. Pol,
Marolles, Ponteves, Rivet, and Breton were killed ; Bosquet,
Mellinet, Bourbaki, and Trochu were wounded. The English
lost 2,271 officers and men ; Generals Warren, Straubenzee,
and Shirley among the wounded. The Russians lost, on this
last day, 12,913 officers and men ; two generals killed and five
wounded.

449

INDEX.

Abdul Medjid Khan. See Sultan.
Adams, General, at Inkerman, 241 et
seq.

mortally wounded, 247.

Adye, John, Brigade-Major of Artil-
lery, 36, 178.

' ' Recollections of a Military

Life," quoted, 39.

in Crimea, 115.

at Balaklava, 169.

at Inkerman, 247.

made a C.B., 349.

at Malta, 389.

Adye, Mortimer, wounded, 326.

taken to Scutari, 344.

brevet-major, 389.

Agamemnon, the, returns from Cir-

cassia, 54.

sails for Varna, 81.

Flagship of Sir Edmund Lyons,

104, 105.
supplies men for Naval Brigade,

162.

leaves Balaklava harbour, 176.

disappointment of, 182.

Sir George Brown on board, 247.

Airey, Sir Richard, writes order for

Light Brigade, 192.
Ajax, the, 50.
Aladyn, English encamp at, 74.

disease at, 85, 86.

Anion, the, 50, 91, 162, 163, 180, 382.

Alexander fort, 373.

Alexander II., Tsar, his proclamation,

296.
Alma,Russians take up position at, 122.

battle of, 128 et seq.

description of field after,

136, 137, 141.

Pennington's account of,

128.

Stothert's account of, 139.

losses at, 143, 444.

delay after, 148.

—^- medals for, 379.

Alma, battle of, wounded at, 179.

Amazon, the, 76.

Ammunition, insufficiency of, for Navy,
222.

scarcity of, after Inkerman, 252.

Amphion, the, probable loss of, 42.

Anapa, storming of, 42, 44.

evacuation of, 326.

Andes, the, cholera on, 105.

Arethusa, the, 31, 34, 3S«, 160.

at Odessa, 34-36 and 35«.

Armenians, Christian, 418, 419.

Army, English, unpreparedness of, for
war, 2, 27.

discomforts of, at Gallipoli, 37,

38.

lack of provisions for sick and

wounded, 39, 79, 80.

bad equipments of, 80.

dissatisfaction in, 86.

invades Crimea, 102 et seq,

recruits, 107.

composition of, 108.

name given by Russians, :45.

complimented by St. Amaud, 145.

general cheerfulness of, 154, 267,

indifference of Britain to needs

of, 211.

privations of, after Inkerman,

252-267.

impatience of, 266.

disorganization in administra-
tion, 272.

death-roll in January, 1855, 281.

improved circumstances of, 312,

313. 316.

thanks of Commons to, 415.

need for reform in, 434.

losses of, in Crimea, 447.

See Heavy Brigade, Highland

Brigade, Light Brigade.

Arrogant, the, 50.

Arrow, the, 151.

Artillery, French, at Alma, 140.

position of batteries at Sevasto-
pol, 173.

— — jealousy of Naval Brigade, 277.

45°

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

Athos and Lemnos, 23.
Austria takes possession of the Princi-
palities, 78, icx».
Avenger, the, lost, 20.

Baillie, Mr., wounded, 180.
Balaklava, as base of operation, 149,

150.
inconvenience of port, 153, 154,

267.

naval guns landed at, 163.

harbour of, 153, 154, 169.

Agamemnon leaves, 176.

battle of, 187 et seq.

proposals to abandon over-ruled,

221.

lack of accommodation at, 250.

after gale, 258.

need of road from, to camps, 268.

difficulties of getting stores from,

268 et seq.

making railway at, 284.

after war, 435.

Baldjik, Stothert at, 62 et seq.
Ballard, Lieut., defends Silistria, 73.
Baltic Fleet, composition of English, 50.

Russian, SI-

dissatisfaction as to work of, 72,

73-
second Expedition, 353, 354.

Banshee, the, 5Sj ^^•

Bashi-Bazouks, evil reputation of, 65,
66.

attempt to reform, 66.

' in the Dobrudscha, 84.

Basilisk, the, 50-

Batchi Serai, Russian hospitals at, 281.

Bath, Turkish, visit to a, 23, 24.

Battle of Alma, 128 et seq. See Alma.

— — Balaklava, 187 ef seq. See Bala-
klava.

Inkerman, 225 et seq. See Inker-
man.

Tchemaya, 355-358. See Tcher-

naya.

Beagle, the, expected, 151.

mentioned, 163.

Beicos, Bay of, Stothert at, 289, 232.

Belbec, river, Allied Armies at, 150.

Bellerophon, the, Stothert in the, 53.

mentioned, 162.

Berthollet, the, St. Arnaud dies in, 155.

Black Sea, named by Turks, 8.

description of, 43.

weather, 44, 58.

depth of, 45.

blockade of ports, 61.

Black Sea, climate, 83, 112.

neutralization of, 414.

Blackwood, Sir Arthur, quoted 166,

217, 250, 282, 287.
Blenheim, the, 50.
Bomarsund, capture of, 72.
Bombardment of Odessa, 33-37.
Sevastopol, 178, 304, 324, 365,

366.
Bosphorus, Allied Fleets sail throi:gh, 8.

women wash clothes in, 38.

Bosquet, General, mentioned, 152, 324.

aids at Inkerman, 246.

Boulganak, fight at, 123, 124.
Bourbaki, General, at Inkerman, 246.
Bowler, Captain, dies of cholera, 344,

345-
Boxer, Rear-Admiral, at Balaklava,
285.

incompetence of, 311.

Brigade. See Heavy Brigade, High-
land Brigade, Light Brigade,
Naval Brigade.
Britannia, the, Stothert, chaplain of,
16.

mentioned, 62, 162, 163.

scurvy on board, 79.

deaths on, 91.

Flagship of Admiral Dundas, 104.

Briton, the, Pennington in, 119.
Bronchitis, epidemic of, 42.
Brown, Sir George, commands British
troops at Gallipoli, 37, 59.

on board the Queen, 80.

friction between, and Lord

Raglan, 87.

daring of, 113.

commands Light Division

at Alma, 131.

red-tapeism of, 131.

wounded at Inkerman, 247.

fury against French, 312.

at second Expedition to

Kertch, 321.

sails for England, 339.

Sergt. Richard, dies in work-
house, 2I2K.
Bruat, Admiral, 381.

death of, 397.

Brunet, General, killed in Assault, 330.'
Buckley fraternizes with Stothert, 86.

death of, 90, 93, 94.

Bulgaria, troops pass through, 60.

a picnic in, 61, 62.

cable laid, 297.

Bulldog, the, 50.

Burgoyne, Sir John, 126, I59.i73> 234-
Burnett, Commander, 157, 162.
Butler, Captain, defends Silistria, 73.

INDEX.

451

Caledonia, the, Stothert, chaplain

of, 15.
Cambridge, Duke of, at Baldjik Bay, 75.
commands Brigade of Guards

at Alma, 132 ; at Bala-

klava, 192. 1

hors de combat, 227.

Campbell, Sir Colin, commands High-
land Brigade at Alma,

132.
attempts to take Tchemaya

position, 286.
Codrington promoted over-
head of, 394.

Captain George, his cheeriness

during privation, 284.

Sir John, mortally wounded, 331.

Canrobert, General, commands French

French troops, 37.

on board the Queen, 80.

succeeds Marshal St. Ar-

naud, 171.

wounded at Inkerman, 247.

selfishness of, 269.

his gift of bread, 272.

responsibility for Kettch

fiasco, 312-315.
Caradoc, the, Lord Raglan in, 106

brings Lord Raglan's remains to

England, 343.
Cardigan, Lord, 121, 174.

narrow escape of, 133.

1 bad generalship of, 138, 205.

remonstrates against order,

194.

heads advance, 194.

his valour, 196, 197, 204,

205.

his character, 204, 207.

Cathcart, Sir George, 192.

death of, 225, 245.

funeral of, 289.

CcUon, the, 33.

Cavalry, British, Captain Nolan's

opinion of, 187, 188.
Stothert compares with

French, 343.
See Light Brigade, Heavy

Brigade.
Champeron, General, at Balaklava, 219.
Chaplains, work of, in Crimea, 276.

comparisons between, 291, 299.

bad treatment of, 291.

scarcity of, 294.

proposed increase of pay, 409,

412, 416.
Cholera at Varna, 82.
in the Fleet, 88-91.

Christie, Captain, agent of transports
at Balaklava, 311.

Church quarrel over shrines in Pales-
tine, 5.

Palm Sunday in Greek, 418.

Codrington, General, stout defence by,
240.

eulogy of Colonel Yea, 336.

appointed Commander-in-
Chief, 394.

Commissariat, deficiencies in, 38, 39,
79, IS4. 166, 266, 272.

difficulty in replenishing stores,

267.

Constantine, Fort, silenced, 183.

Constantine, Grand Duke, at Sveaborg,

354-
Constantinople, Romanoff, ambition to

possess, 3.

description of, in 1854, 23.

reception of troops at, 45.

dangers of strangers in, 384.

Correspondents, War, value of, 98.

evil of, 251.

complaints against, 328.

Cossacks, cruelty of, 198, 199.
Crimea, postage to and from, 71, 76.

futility of Invasion of, 99, 427-

Invasion of 102 et seq.

condition of forces on landing,

107, 108, 113
ignorance of allies as to defences

of, 116.
hardships of winter in, 166, 252,

279.
through cable communication

with, 297, 312.
Crimean War. See War.
Cuckoo, the, 80.
Curctfoa, the, at Eupatoria, 293.

D'Allonvillb, General, at Balaklava,
203, 219.

assists Turks at Eupatoria,

380.

Dannenberg, General, at Battle of
Inkerman, 239, 243.

Danube, Russians cross, 25.

D'Autermarre, General, at assault on
Sevastopol, 330.

Devna, dangers of water of lake at, 78.

Deschenes, Parseval, in Baltic, 51.

D'Hilliers, General Baraguay, com-
mander of the Baltic force, 72.

Diamond, the, Stothert in, 265, 273.

bad sailing qualities of, 80.

mentioned, 162.

Dispensary-Hospital, 161.

452

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

Doctors, scarcity of, 88, 142, 209.

reasons for, 92, 93.

Domville, H. J., Letter from, 48, 49.
Douglas, Lieut., mentioned, 157.

death of, 305.

Col. John, quoted, 224.

Duke of Wellington, the, 50.
Dundas, Admiral, Excuses for the delay
at Sevastopol, 41, 42, 46.

opposes Invasion of Crimea,

lOI.

in the Britannia, 104.

instructions issued by, 177.

the Hon. R. S., commands

British Fleet in Baltic, 353.

East, Lieut. James, 44.

Eber, Mr., travels virith Stothert, 19.

correspondent to the Times,

29, 179, 181.

— visits SirEdmondLyons,i6l.

visits Stothert, 179, 181.

writes for "Edinburgh Re-
view," 181.

goes to Balaklava, 224.

at Eupatoria, 300.

Edinburgh, the, at Constantinople,

395-

"Edinburgh Review," the, Eber
writes in, 181.

Emein, Cape, description of coast,
88, 89.

Efnen, the, arrival of, 46.

Emu, the. Lord Raglan lands from, 56.

England, condition in 1853, 6, 7.

unpreparedness for war, 40.

mistakes of Government, 98, 235.

awakes to deficiencies of Adminis-
tration, 272.

neglect of her heroes, 210, 2l6.

delay in sending aid to Crimea,

226.

negotiations for peace, 413.

English, friction between French and,

IIS, 146.

Entrenchments, Russian, at Sevastopol,

ISS> 158.

difficulty of making, 165.

necessity for, 234.

visit to trenches, 316, 320.

Eupatoria, arrival of Fleets at, 1 10.

pronunciation of, in.

description of, in, 113.

disasters at, by gale, 258.

success of Turkish Army at, 292.

departure of Turks from, 297.

defeat of Russians at, 380, 383.

Europa, the loss of the, 76.

Euxine, old Ottoman way into, 2

etymology of, 8.

See also Black Sea.
Evans, Sir de Lacy, commands at
Scutari, 38.

mentioned, 174K, 209.

— wounded, 227.

presses need for entrench-
ments, 234.
wounded at Inkerman, 245.

Fedouikinb Hills, 355, 356.

Fielder, Mr., Commissary-General-in-
Chief, 166.

Firebrand, the, death of captain of, 77.

Flagstaff Bastion, French direct atten-
tion to, 174.

Fleet, see Navy.

Russian, shut up in Sevastopol,4i.

description of, 370.

Forey, General, 152.

Forster, Mr., wounded, 179.

France, internal dissatisfaction in, 5.

French, as foragers, 38.

mortality amongst, 84.

conduct of troops, 87, 114.

army invades Crimea, 103

friction between, and English,

IIS, 146-

courage of, at Alma, 127.

contempt for Russians, 136.

opinion at headquarters about

assault, 171.

quarrels amongst, 180.

cavalry assist at Balaklava, 203,

privations of, in 1854, 2S6, 271.

reinforcements of, 269.

selfishness of, 269.

— — aid English, 285-287.

commissariat burnt, 290.

Russian opinion of troops, 309.

increased energy of, 351.

victory at Tchemaya, 3SS-3S8-

capture the MalakofF, 367.

losses of, in Crimea, 448.

Furious, the, 49, 69, 293.

Fury, the, mentioned, 29.

rashness of, 31.

captures prisoners, 75.

reconnoitres CrimTartary, 80, 81.

arrives at Sevastopol, 81.

immunity from cholera, 88.

rescue work of, in gale, 260.

Galata, Pera and Stamboul, district

of, 25.
Galatea, the, Stothert, chaplain of, 16.

INDEX.

453

Gallipoli, rendezvous at, 37.
Garrard, Mr., visits Crimea, 373.
GifFard, Capt., wounded and taken
prisoner, 48-49.

joined by his wife, 67.

death of, 67.

sword to be returned to, 77.

John, 49.

Gladiator, the, 50.

"Golgotha of suffering," the Scutari

hospital, 38.
Goodlake, Capt. Gerald, 209.
Gordon's Battery, 173, 183.
Gorgon, the, 50.
Gortschakoff, Prince, takes command,

239-

at battle of Inkerman, 242.

supersedss Prince Mentschi-

koff, 297.

consults with Todleben, 355.

at battle of Tchemaya, 356.

Gough, Field Marshal Lord, 379.

Graham, Sir James, succeeds Northum-
berland at Admiralty, 7.

press attacks on, 64.

Granada, description of coast of, 19.

Greathead, Lieut., death of, 184.

Greek Church, see Church, 5.

Greeks, unrest among, 22.

ordered to leave Constantinople,

29.

corruption of, 28.

hatred of Turks to, 30.

partisans of Russia, 75.

incendiarism by, at Varna, 102.

brawls with, 385.

Green Hill battery, 273.

Grey, Admiral, 382, 388.

■ his house burnt, 420, 421.

Guards, the, sickness amongst, 120,
282.

at Alma, 131, 132.

at Inkerman, 231, 242, 243, 246.

— — attempt on Tchernaya position,
286.

disappearance of, 302.

Guns, siege, landed by Navy, see
Artillery, 163-165.

Hammett, Commander, death of , 358.

his rashness, 358, 359.

Harrison, Troop Sergeant-Major, saves
Pennington, 199, 200.

subsequent career, 200.

Hasfort, Mount, Russian attempt to

capture, 356.
Hay, Lord John, wounded, 306.
Heath, Captain, superseded, 285.

Heavy Brigade, charge of, 190, 192.

Hecla, the, 50.

Helsingfors not bombarded, 354.

Henry, Nathan, taken prisoner, 198.

Herbert, Mr. Sidney, aids Miss Night-
ingale's crusade, 254.

Hewett, Sir W. N. W., mentioned,
209.

Highflyer, the, 35.

Highland Brigade at Alma, 131, 132.

march towards Tchemaya,

286.

■ encamp at Kamara, 362.

Sir Colin Campbell retires

from command of, 394.

Himalaya, the, at Gallipoli, 38.

Horses, Turkish, 65.

Hurdle, Lieut. -Col. Thos. commands
marines, 161.

Hussars, nth. exploits of, 117, 125,

133-

at Alma, 133.

in the Charge, 196.

8th, at Balaklava, 199 et seq.

Inflexible, the, 27.

Inglis, Capt., mentioned, 115, 119.

Inkerman, Battle of, 225 et seq.

casualties in, 228, 230.

■ estimate of forces at, 239.

description of field after,

246, 247.

Russian expectation of re-
sult, 247, 248.

disparity in forces, 248.

fortification of, 255, 256.

features of, 359.

Isabella, the, Pennington in, 119.

Jasper, the, abandoned, 351.
Johnstone, Col., wounded, 330.
Joliffe, Capt., death of, 166.

Kadikoi, Sir Colin Campbell at, 161.

Mother Seacole's hospital at, 161.

Heavy Brigade at, 217.

French construct road at, 286.

Kamiesh, landing at, by French, 152.

superiority over Balaklava for

disembarkation, 271.
Kars, capitulation of, 391 et seq.
Katcha, River, 150.
Keppel, Admiral, quoted, 306, 314,
377-

succeeds Lushington, 377.

returns to England, 399.

454 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

Kertch, 1st Expedition to, a fiasco,

3". 313-

2nd Expedition to, 321.

excesses of Turks at, 322, 325.

Kieff, 3.

Kinglake quoted, 100, 103, 105, 237, 269.

his aspersions on Lord Cardigan,

204-207.
Korniloff, Admiral, commands Russian

Force, 148.
throws up entrenchments,

iSS-

death of, 177.

Kronstadt, failure to take, 72.
its invulnerable defences, 353.

La Hogtie, Stothert, chaplain of, 16.

— — mentioned, 50.

Lancaster, Right and left, battery, 173.

Lawless, 49.

Lazaretto, 49.

Leander, the, at Balaklava port, 153.

Leopard, the, 50.

Liffey, tie, Stothert, chaplain of, 16.

Light Brigade at Alma, 132.

text of order to, at Bala-
klava, 192, 193.

charge of, 194 et seq.

no trumpet sounded, 203,

204, 445.

English neglect of survivors,

211-216.

Division at Alma, 130 et seq.

Lightning, the, 50.

Liprandi commands, 184, 185, 217.

superseded, 239.

Lloyd, Commander, killed in action,
179.

Locust, the, 50.

London, the, immunity from cholera,
88-107.

mentioned, 162, 182.

in gale, 259.

Lord Raglan, the, in gale, 260.

Lourmel, Gen., 174.

Lucan, Lord, commands cavalry divi-
sion at Balaklava, 187.

■ receives "order,'' 193.

recalled, 293.

Luders, Gen. , reinforces at Sevastopol,
344-

Lushington, Capt., 162, 238.

promoted, 377.

Lyons, Sir Edmund, commands the
Agamemnon, 104.

allays friction, 115.

opinion as to sinking of

Russian ships, 149.

Lyons, Sir Edmund, takes Agamemnon
from Balaklava, 176.

opposes abandonment, 221.

personal likeness to Nelson,

.313-

his character, 313.

expedition to Nicolaieff,

381.

attends Conference in Paris,

^ 413-
Lyons, Capt., harasses the enemy, 322.

wounded, 334.

death of, 335.

Lyons, GuU of, 20.

Lyson, Sir Daniel, quoted, 104.

Madden, Lieut., killed, 180.
Malakoff, the, ineffectual Assault upon,
320 et seq.

bombardment of, 363-368.

key to Sevastopol, 363.

capture of, 367.

origin of name, 432.

Mamelon, the, storming of, 324, 326.

description of, after capture, 327.

March, Capt., wounded, 231.
Marines landed at Sevastopol, 158.

force for defence of heights, 161.

Marmora, General de la, 314, 357.
attends Conference at Paris,

413-
Mayran, Gen., wounded in Assault,

330-
Medical requirements, insufficiency of,

147.
Megcera, the, troopship, 272.
Mends, Capt., his feat in the Arethusa,
.3S»-

diary quoted, 257, 363«.

Mentschikoff, Prince, sent to Sultan,

5-6.

does not oppose landing, 108.

position of, at Alma, 126,

127.

alleged cruelty, 151, 208.

deserts Sevastopol, 158.

establishes headquarters at

Tchemaya, 238.
plans surprise of Inkerman,

239-
superseded by Gortschakoff,

297.
Michell, Admiral, 141, 260, 352.
afterwards Sir Frederick

Michell, 3i«.
offers to break the boom,

263.
Militia, attempt to incorporate, 3.

INDEX.

455

Moorsom, Capt., 162.

Morris, Gen., services atBalaklava, 219.

Capt., at Balaklava, zo6.

Mortars, British dread of, 273.

description of fire from, 316, 317.

Mouravieff, General, capture of Kars

by, 393-
Muller, General, in command at Sevas-
topol, 158.

Nakimoff, Admiral, at Sinope, I.

killed at Sevastopol, 350.

Napier, Sir Charles, 46.

composition of Baltic Fleet,

SO-
requires co-operation of land

force, 72.
Napoleon, Louis, desire for war, 5.
proposal to go to Crimea,

297.
his opinion of Treaty of

Paris, 414.
Napoleonic dynasty, idea founded on, 5.
Nasmyth, Lieut., defends Silistria, 73.
Naval Brigade, the, lands for siege of

Sevastopol, 162-164.

camp of, 167.

Stothert, Chaplain of, 167,

255-

life at Balaklava, 168.

army's jealousy of, 277.

losses in bombardment of

Sevastopol, causes of, 306,

307-

in Assault, 331.

want of promotion in, 352.

methods of firing, 365.

rejoins the Fleet, 377.

wigs for, 307.

Navy, British, unpreparedness for the

war, 2, 27.

failure to aid at Sinope, 7.

moved up into the Euxine,

8, 9.
base of operations, 10, 142,

ISO.

bombards Odessa, 33.

attacked by cholera, 88.

comparison with merchant

service, 94.

spirit of, 107, 154.

dissatisfaction as to part in

siege, 160-176.

reasons for inactivity, 160.

land men and guns for siege,

162-164.
bombards Sevastopol, 178,

304, 306, 324, 365.

Navy, British, insufiScient ammunition

for, 232.

the great storm, 257-259.

resourcefulness of, 272, 307.

• religion in, 277.

personnel of, 277.

expenses of officers in, 315,

422.
capture of Kertch and Yeni-

kali by, 321.

guns worn out, 349.

promotion of Capt. Pasley,

360.

messing of officers in, 387.

thanks of Commons to, 415.

hereditary obligation of, 431.

need for strengthening, 434.

composition of Black Sea

Fleet, 442.
See under French, Russian.
Newcastle, Duke of, how far responsible

for Invasion, 100, 101.
Newspapers, reaction caused by, 98.

information to Russia by, 251, 280.

Nicholas Romanoff, Tsar, his charac-
ter, 4, 5.

Defenderof Greek Church, 5.

his energy, 40.

his death, 295.

Nicolaieff, Expedition against, 381.

Todleben summoned to, 381.

Niger, the, 47.
Nightingale, Florence, 38.

arrival at Scutari, 254.

Nolan, Capt., his opinion of cavalry,

187, 188. WW.

carries "Order," I92,'i93.

killed, 194.

his responsibility, 193-195.

Nood, a boy, 49.

Northumberland, Duke of, increases

Navy, 7.

Odessa, description of, 29-32.

bombarded, 33-37.

merchant seamen illtreated by

Russians at, 44.
Old Fort, Armies arrive at, 106.
Omar Pasha harasses Russians, 3.

masses troops at Shumla, 55.

at Varna, 59.

occupies Eupatoria, 292, 293.

his character, 292.

■ leaves Eupatoria, 297.^

failure to relieve Kars, 391

et seq.
Stothert's opinion of, 395,

397, 398.

4S6

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

Ortaquoi, first English church in Tur-
key, erected by Stothert at, 15,
402 et seq.

Otter, the, 50.

Paget, Lord George, quoted, 85, 106,

. 146, 1 75. 333. 3S7». 379»-

in the charge of the Light

Brigade, 195.
at deathbed of Lord Raglan,

339-
assists Turks at Eupatoria,

380.
Palmer, Sir Roger, 1 18-120.
Palmerston, Lord, proposes vote of

thanks to Forces, 415.
Paramatta, the, life on board, 1 18-120.
Paris, Peace Conference at, 413.

treaty of, 414.

its terms not kept, 435.

Parker, Capt., shot by Greeks, 77, 88.

Partridge, Lieut., 157.

Pasley, Capt., naval impression at

promotion, 360.
Patterson, Col. , his arduous task, 269.
Paul, Fort, ruins of, 376.
Pauloff, General, at Inkerman, 239

et seq.
Peace, conditions of, 414.
Peel, Major, 124.
Peel, Capt., 162, 184, 232.

at Inkerman, 249.

wounded in Assault, 332.

P^lissier, General, Commander-in-
Chief of French Army,

321.

energy of, 323.

his responsibility for failure

of Assault, 329, 338, 346.
• regret at death of Lord

Raglan, 339.

in capture of Malakoff,367.

decorated by Queen, 379.

takes title of Due de Mala-

koff, 432.
his General Order on death

of Lord Raglan, 446.
Penaud, Admiral, in the Baltic, 353.
Penelope, the, 50.
Pennefather, General, temporarily

commands Second Divi-
sion, 237.

at Inkerman, 241.

Pennington, W. H., Gladstone's

Tragedian, 116.
his narrative of voyage to

and landing in Crimea,

117-125.

Pennington, W. H., his narrative of
Battle of Alma, 128-

138-

saved by Troop-Sergt. -Maj.

Harrison, 199, 206.

feelings in battle, 202.

wounded, 197, 198.

Perekof, occupation abandoned, 60.
Pigmy, the, 50.
Ponsonby, Capt, 259.
Porcupine, the, 50.
Postal service, 62, 76.

French and English, 71.

Prince, the, lost in gale, 258.
Provisions, cost of, in Crimea, 94, 95,

388.
Purvis, Lieut., wounded, 179.

Queen, the, description of, 9.

goes to Siribpe, 9.

Stothert, chaplain of, 16-31.

guns sent from, to Terrible, 32.

at Baldjik, 62 et seq.

sails for Sevastopol, 80.

attacked by cholera, 89.

comparative immunity, from pes-
tilence, 107.

mentioned, 160, 162, 381.

casualties, 177, 178.

— — fired by red hot cannon ball, 179,
i8p.

bravery of, at Bombardment, 180.

disappointment of, 182.

in the great gale, 258.

goes to Stamboul for repairs, 262.

at Beicos Bay, 294.

— — returns to Sevastopol, 304.

• joined by Capt. Stopford, 352.

returns to Beicos, 382.

Flagship to Admiral, 382.

Raglan, Lord, lands at Gallipoli, 56.
as military leader, 56-58,

.339. 340, 341-

his opinion of the War, 64.

shot at by a Greek, 75.

friction between, and Sir

George Brown, 87.
not responsible for Invasion,

lOl.

decision after Alma, 149.

occupies district round

Sevastopol, 157.

satisfies Navy, 158.

despatches of, to Duke o

Newcastle, i6i», 164, 165
headquarters of, 172.

INDEX.

457

R^lan, Lord, position of, after Inker-
man, 251, 252.

fears to press French, 269.

high-mindedness of, 282.

opinion of Army as to, 289.

difficulties of, 308.

seized with dysentery, 339.

death of, 339.

body brought to England,

343-

French General Order on,

446.

Randolph, Commander, 162.

Read, General, killed, 356.

Redan, The, English batteries com-
mand, 173.

ineffectual assault upon, 329,

et seq.

second failure to capture, 368.

invulnerable position of, 371.

condition of, after evacuation,

375-
Redcliffe, Lord Stratford de, his skill

as diplomatist, 6.

defeats St. Arnaud's designs

on Turkish Army, 59.

rumours of responsibility for

fall of Kars, 399.
Redoubts for defence, 161.
Reliance, the, Pennington on, 119.
Resolute, the, lost in gale of 14 Nov.

1854, 258.
Retribution, the, 23, 67.
Revenge, the, Stothert, chaplain of, 16.
Rifle Brigade at Alma, 130.
Riga, Gulf of, blockaded, 353.
Roads, necessity of, at Balaklava, 268,

269.
Robinson, Dr. F., "Diary," quoted,

370, 371-
Rodney, the, 81, 91, 162, 163, 388.
Rodolph, Mount, French erect batteries

on, 174.

hot fire on, 183.

Royal Albert, the, 395.

Russell, Sir William Howard, quoted,

106, 36o».
Russia invades Provinces, 3.

demands of, 5, 6.

— destroys Turkish Fleet at Sinope,
7.8.

disadvantage of size, 40.

conditions of peace for, 414.

Russians, loss of, at Odessa, 34.

cruelty to merchant seamen by,

44.

kindly treat prisoners from Tiger,

68, 77-
quality of soldiery, 109, no.

Russians, strength of, in Crimea, 115.

occupy heights of Alma, 122.

confidence of, 127.

indifferently armed, 146.

— — anxiety of, in Sevastopol, 172.
losses compared with English,

i8i. 354. 3»-
dastardly conduct of, 198, 199,

232, 289.
estimate of numbers at Inkerman,

239-
depression of, after Inkerman,

266.
gain information from English

newspapers, 251, 280.

death of Tsar, 295.

docility of, 354, 355.

defeat at Tchernaya, 335, 358.

plight of, in summer of 1855, 362.

destruction of Fleet, 371.

losses of, in Sevastopol, 447.

Sachen, Gen. Osten, kindness to Eng-
lish prisoners, 49, 67.

arrival of, at Sevastopol, 225.

Sailing ships towed by steamers, 80, 81 .

Sailors, see Navy.

St. Arnaud, Marshal, character, 58.

takes command of French

troops, 59.

suggests taking command of

Ottoman Army, 89.

— at Baldjik Bay, 75.

English Army dissatisfied

with, 87.

courage of, 102.

confidence of, 103.

sickness of, 106-127.

at Alma, 127.

— — appreciation of British sol-
diers, 145.

deprecates following up

victory, 149.

death of, 155.

St. Vincent, the, Stothert, chaplain of,
16.

Salisbury, Lord, advice as to maps, 4, 1 1 .

Sampson, the, opens fire on Odessa,

33. 34-
dismantled in gale of 14 Nov.

1854, 258.
Sandbag battery, 171.

Sir Evelyn Wood's account

of position of, 235-237.

— — defence of, 241 et seq.

Sanspareil, the, 180, 182, 431.
ordered into port, 221.

4S8 FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

Sanspareil, engineers of, invent coffee
roaster, 272.

hospital ship, 274.

Sapun^ Ridge, 171.

Sardinians, Army of, joins Allies, 314.

at battle of Tchemaya, 355,

3S8.
Scarlett, Gen., leads Heavy Brigade at

Balaklava, 190, 218.
Scamander, the, 298, 299.
Schamyl aids Allied forces, 42.
Scobell, Capt., 352.
Scots Greys land, 130.

in battle of Balaklava, 191.

Schools, Naval, supplies of books for,

223.
Scutari, hospital at, 38, 254.
Seacole, Mother, her dispensary, 161.
Sevastopol, utility of, to Russia, 4.

Russians retreat to, 25.

Russian Fleet shut up in, 41.

strength of, 41, 81.

blockade of, 40 et seq.

naval engagement off, 69.

British Fleetsailsagainst,8oc^j«f.

description of surrounding coun-
try, 81, 82.

munitions for capture absent, 85.

ships sunk across entrance to, 149.

French capture a fort, 151.

marvellous defences of, 155, 158,

172.

completely garrisoned, 175.

navy bombards, 178.

failure of bombardment, 183.

Sortie from, 187 et seq.

Allies surprised by Russians, 239

et seq.

Sorties from,273 ^t ^^9-> 290, 315.

strengthening of defences, 279.

resumption of bombardinent of,

304, 306.

desire of British to assault, 306,

3o8> 309-

a visit to the trenches, 316-320.

third bombardment of, 324.

ineffectual assault upon, 329

et seq.

reinforced, 344.

desperate plight of, 362 et seq.

renewed bombardment of, 365,

366.

capture of the Malakoff, 367.

evacuation of south town, 368

et seq.

description of, after, 373-376.

demolition of works at, 380.

reception of news of peace, 415.

Russian losses during siege, 447.

Shadforth, Col., killed in Assault, 331.
Shell Hill, guns established on, 241.
She well, Col., leads 8th Hussars at

Balaklava, 199.
Shumla, massing of Turkish troops at,

55-
Sickness among troops, 79, 80, 83, 84,

169, 267.
Silistria attacked by Russians, 63, 64.

siege raised, 67, 73.

re-investment of, 68.

Allied troops march to relief of,

70.

retreat of Russians from, 71.

defence of, 73.

Simpson, General, at deathbed of Lord
Raglan, 339.

• assumes command, 341.

orders Assault on die Redan,

368.
decorated by French Em-
peror, 379.

— ; resignation of, 394.

Sinont, see Sinope.

Sinope, disaster to Turks at, 7, 8.

Grand Vizier's reception of news,

14.

news of, arouses English people,

27.

inscriptions at, 52.

Siomonoff, General, at battle of Inker-
man, 239, 241.

killed at, 242.

Somerset, Col. , optimism of, 273.
Sphinx, the, 50.

Spring, Tom, at Balaklava, 198, 199.
Steamers tow sailing ships, 80, 81.
Steevens, Mr., quoted, 167.
Steward, Capt., wounded, 179.
Stopford, Capt., joins the Queen, 352.

his character, 359.

Store dispensary hospital, 161.
Stores, difficulty of getting from Bala-
klava, 285.
Stothert, George, visit to the Crimea,
372.

Rev. S. Kelson, early life, li

et seq.

becomes Naval Chaplain, 1 2.

character, 12, 13, 401, 402.

sails for the East, 17.

joins the Queen, 31.

present at bombardment of

Odessa, 33.

at Sevastopol, 41, 80.

in the Crimea, 80 et seq.

description of battle of

Alma, 139 etseq.
finds dog on battlefield, 148.

INDEX.

459

Stothert, Rev. S. Kelson, Chaplain to
Naval Brigade at Sevas-
topol, 167, 25s, 265,

273-

attacked by fever, i6g.

his account of battle of

Balaklava, 208.
indignation at dilatoriness

of British public, 226.
his account of gale of 14th

November, 1854, 259-262.

ill health of, 264, 274, 288.

— transferred to Diamond,2&^,

273-

goes to Beicos, 289.

breaks down, 292.

on hospital duty, 299.

returns to Sevastopol, 308.

visits the trenches, 316-320.

description of field after

storming the Mamelon,

327-
interview with Lord Raglan,

347-
his description of Sevastopol

after evacuation, 373-376.

taste for literature, 401-437-

builds church at Ortaquoi,

402 et seq.

— suffers from jaundice, 409.

receives tidings of peace,4l9.

testimonial from Ortaquoi,

436-

later life of, 437-439-

death of, 438.

Stretleskaia, Bay of, 152, 367.
Strangeways, General, death of, 227,

247.
Stromboli, the 50.

Sultan, support given by British Am-
bassadors to, 6.

reviews Allied troops, 60.

Sveaborg, defences of, 353.

bombardment of, 353, 354.

Syra, description of in 1854, 21, 22.

Tanner, -j. seaman, 49.

Tchemaya, the, 172.

Mentschikoff establishes head-
quarters at, 238.

ineffectual attempt to capture

position on, 286.

French cross, 320.

battle of, 3SS-3S9-

Terrible, the, guns sent to from the
Queen, 32.

damaged at Odessa, 33.

armament of, 37.

Terrible, the, cruising off Sevastopol,
67.

mentioned, 81, 160, 163, 172, 173.

immunity from cholera, 88.

takes news of Odessa, 37«.

Termagant, the, 50.

Theories concerning conduct of Cri-
mean War, I.

Therapia, hospital at, 410-412.

Thompson, Dr., dies of cholera, 162.

Tiger, the, at Odessa, 34.

disaster to, at Odessa, 47 •49.

repaired by Russians, 67.

kind treatment of prisoners, 68,

77-
Times, the, Eber, correspondent to, 29.

his letters to, 179, 181, 300.

Stothert's correspondence with,

298, 328.
correspondent on board Queen,

308.

description of Lord Lyons, 313K.

article on death of Lord Rs^lan,

347- . ^ . ■
complamt as to want of promotion

in Navy, 352.

rabid article against Fleets, 376.

Stothert's opinion of, 395.

Todleben, Col. de, 154, 185.
his engineering skill, 280,

349-

disabled, 349.

advises Russians to take

offensive, 355.
summoned to Nicolaieff,

381.
Torrens, Gen., wounded at Inkerman,

24S-

Tractir Bridge, 357.

Trafalgar, the, bad sailing qualities of
80.

mentioned, 88, 162, 163.

deaths, 91.

Travis, wounded, 49.

Treaty of Paris, 414.

Trenches, a visit to, 316, 320.

Trent, the, rescue work in gale, 259.

Trevelyan, Col., 120.

Lieut., at Balaklava, 202.

Tribune, the, arrives at Baldjik Bay,
76.

Triton, the, 182.

Troopship, life on board a, 118, 120.

Tsar, see Nicholas Romanoff, Alex-
ander II.

Turks, their character, '23, 28, 97.

• corruption amongst, 28.

administration of justice amongst,

29. 30-

460

FROM THE FLEET IN THE FIFTIES.

Turks, expressions of, 300.

accuse English of perfidy, 64.

their horses, 65.

under command of St. Amaud,

108.

fighting qualities, 108, 109.

resourcefulness of, 175.

defeat of, 185, 186.

fight at Balaklava, 189.

barbarity, 227.

Allies mistake in not using, 235.

repel Russian attack at Eupatoria,

293-

leave Eupatoria, 297.

occupy Yenikali, 321.

victory at Eupatojria, 380, 383.

position under Treaty of Paris,

414.
Turkish visit to a town, 64.

: dinner party, 69-70.

notions of war, 70.

incapacity of Fleet, 74.

plight of Army, 97.

Twelve Apostles, the, 370.
Twyford, Lieut., killed, 306.

Umbrella, the Highlander's, 1 14.

Valmy, the, loss of 240 men in, 91.
Valorous, the, at Eupatoria, 293.
Varna, Stothert discovers antiquities
at, SI.

fortifications at, 53.

troops arrive at, 53.

life at, 54.

French force land at, 73-74.

Agamemnon leaves for, 81.

sickness at, 82, 84.

conflagration at, 102.

nth Hussars at, 120.

Vauban, the, disabled, 33, 69.
Vesifziius, the, 47, 49.

runs ashore, 67.

Victoria, the, Stothert, chaplain of, 16.
Victor of Hohenlohe, Prince, 377.
Vinoy, Gen., 238.

— — comes to aid of Highland

Brigade, 286.
Viper, the, at Eupatoria, 293.
Vivian, Gen., responsibility, 398.
Vladimir, the, her speed and size, 6q.
Vulture, the, 50.

Walker, Col., leads Scots Fusiliers at
Inkerman, 244.

disabled, 246.

Walton Church, 22.
War, theories concerning conduct ot,
I.

causes leading up to the, 2, 26.

British unpreparedness for, 2, 27.

declaration of, 31.

horrors of, 136, 137, 141.

opinions as to duration of, 130.

—- — results of the, 427 et seq. 435.
correspondents, see Correspon-
dents.
White, Capt., in charge of the Light

Brigade, 197.
Whitmarsh, Rev., 423.
Whyte, Lieut., takes Queen into action,
308, 310.

Stothert urges his promotion,

308, 316.
Williams, Col., defence of Kars, 391

et seq.
Winter of 1854-5, sufi'erings of troops

during, 266 et seq., 279 et seq.
Wood, Sir Evelyn, naval cadet, 3i«.

quoted, 108, 126 «, 157, 163,

282, 307.

with Naval Brigade, 162.

• his testimony to Lord Cardi-
gan, 207.

account of Sandbag Battery,

235-237-

accounts for losses [in^Naval

Brigade, 307.

wounded in Assault, ^"332,

333-
WoronzofF Road, 165, 221.
Wounded, care of, 142, 143, 147, 209,
250

Yalta, ships ordered to, 174.
Yea, Col., at Alma, 140.

mentioned, 145.

energyin obtaining supplier,

270.

killed in Assault, 330.

Gen. Codrington's eulogy of

336, 337.
Yenikali, surrender of, 321.
occupied by Turkish troops, 321.

Zouaves, cruelty of, 112.

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